I'll go with Deathblade, Scythe, Incendia, and Len to look for firewood. The rest of you stay here and set up camp. "Why would he take me?" Len asked himself as he followed Lucas and the others. He would have been quite content to stay back at camp with the others and help set up their temporary shelter. He was especially wary to be going with Deathblade and Scythe, although at the same time he understood why Lucas wanted them to come with him and not stay with the others. Scythe and Deathblade were trouble, that was a given. But did that mean Lucas saw him as possible trouble? Or maybe just a bunch a dead weight he was hoping to lose at Dyan by pushing him to the limits? Len was determined to find out and prove himself worthy of their quest.
Lucas led the four further away from the camp, determined to find wood as soon as possible so that the group could make a fire. Without fire, they wouldn't have dinner, and without dinner the next day would be rough. Besides, it was getting very late and they were running out of time. Luke pulled his cloak tight against the cold, shivering. Yes, they needed a fire. Not just for food, but for survival. That's why he had chosen for so many to accompany him. Normally he would be able to hunt for wood on his own, but this was an exception. Immediately he began to peer into the darkness, searching for something usuable, and he gathered up a few good-sized branches and the like. They wouldn't need flint or stone; it would be simple to cast a fire spell to start the fire. "Help me out, would you?" he called to the others. * * * Back at camp, Annaleigh began to set up her bedroll, laying it a short distance from Luke's, and then she sat at the base of a tree, huddling up to keep warm until her brother and the others returned. Why couldn't I come with them? she thought to herself while keeping a close watch on all of her companions. I don't trust any of these people . . . Behind her, the crack of a branch startled her, and Anna jumped, spinning around to see what the source of the noise was. However, after peering into the darkness she saw nothing and turned back around. It was just an animal, most likely.
Agnorth, who had begun snoring an hour ago, suddenly burst from sleep. At first he thought it was the cracking branch which woke him, but he felt something... different. Something's wrong. He thought, reaching for his warhammer.
Gathering firewood was easy for deathblade, he was used to the darkness and he could call himself nocturnal. He had a good amount of branches when all of a sudden he sensed something. He dropped the wood and pulled out his sword. In a quiet tone, but loud enough for the others to hear, he spoke "we're not alone" then something jumped out at him.
Atrius lay on the ground, hoping to go unnoticed while the tasks were being given. He was a bit tired from the long walk to the camping spot. He did. Maybe they thought he was drunk? A fair assumption, but wrong. He didn't drink nearly enough to get merry after the fight between members started, nor enough for him to sleep. He still had some flasks, but he needed to save some for the trip. Both Anna and Agnorth were startled, not too long apart, but it didn't bother him. Probably just some animals or something of the sort. That, too, was wrong.
Len quickly picked up a few sticks fro the ground, carrying them in his underarms. He made a mental note to not allow anyone to throw his staff in fire thinking it was a large piece of wood. Of course, this got him wondering if his staff was enchanted with any protection similar to the enchantments Barobarg put on his shoes and vest. His mind wandered quickly though as Deathblade announced they weren't alone. "Of course we're not alone," Len stated simply, louder than Deathblade had spoken. "There's trees and animals out here of course. As long as we get back to the camp soon we should be fine... right?" Len's mind began to race again. What if Deathblade had sensed something in the darkness? Were they all going to die already?
Lucas noticed something as well - something strange, like the presence of a being strong in magic, but not entirely human. What was it? Another demon? No, it couldn't be. Not so close to town. But there had 'supposedly' been a demon in the tavern, hadn't there? It was possible . . . Luke started when something jumped out of the brush, attacking Deathblade. Spinning around and drawing his sword in one single motion, he saw Deathblade lying on the ground, a demon about to finish him off with a spell. Thinking quickly, Luke summoned all of his strength in casting a Frost spell at the enemy, but he only suceeded in barely hurting the monster and causing it to turn around on him. The demon flung itself at Luke, a magical weapon in its hand. It had the outline of a man but was made of fire. "Ah!" Lucas dodged to the left, narrowly avoiding being stabbed in the chest. The bushes and trees rustled nearby and several other creatures appeared, forming a circle around the four humans - fiends, goblins, imps, and two other demons. They were terribly outnumbered, and Luke caught sight of them all before he was flung to the ground. * * * Annaleigh started again when the bushes rustled a second time, and she turned again. She felt a feeling of dread, of pure evil emitting from the forest itself. Anna whispered the name of the Father God to herself, asking for his guidance, before conjuring a spell in her mind in case this evil being proved dangerous. The bushes rustled a third time and one of the creatures appeared, flinging a Fire spell at Annaleigh. Having been prepared, Anna lunged to the side and lay flat on her stomach, crawling into a standing position. She cried out to the others and hid behind the tree she had previously been leaning against, ready to use her spell when the demon came too close. Inside, the young woman knew that more of the creatures would be coming soon . . .
Deathblade had been knocked to the ground by the surprise, then just as he thought he was finished a spell hit the demon. It turned its a attention away from him and towards Luke. He got up quickly, lunging at the demon and crushing it into the snow with his blade. He turned and fired dark energy towards the demons rushing him. He heard fire rushing at him, he pivoted on his foot and bringing his hands together he formed a shield deflecting the flames. He clashed his blade at the oncoming demon with its sword, he was able to deflect and counter attack the strikes. The others were having trouble though, this wasn't working they had to come up with a plan.
"Ah!" Len cried when he realized they were surrounded. His magic would be practically useless in numbers this large. He hoped the others would be strong enough to save them all. He witnessed Deathblade leaping into action and fighting off numerous foes. "Alright, if he can do it then so can I," Len told himself. He looked ahead, spotting a small pack of goblins breaking the circle and charging the group with their swords drawn. "Fire!" Len called, the tip of his staff began to blaze in a blinding light. He focused on his staff and then in a spurt of smoke and ash only a plume of sparks shot out of the staff. "Crap," Len told himself before seeing the sparks striking several of the goblins in their eyes, blinding them. "Thank you sparks!" Len announced, roaring and charging at the blinded goblins. He quickly swung his staff with all of his might bashing the head of a goblin and knocking it out cold. He raised his staff again, ready to swing at the next goblin.
The bushes and trees rustled nearby and several other creatures appeared, forming a circle around the four humans - fiends, goblins, imps, and two other demons. "D*** it!" Incendia thought to herself. Everyone except Deathblade was caught off guard, and even he was shoved to the ground. The demon flung itself at Luke "Lucas!" Incendia yelled. She quickly spun around to face Lucas and was about to fling a fire spell at the demon, but stopped herself. "S***, that won't work!" Incendia quickly redirected the spell and took out a goblin and an imp or two that had jumped at Len. But as soon as she had done that another demon jumped at her with a sword. She jumped out of its way but it managed to cut off her satchel of jems. "No... those gems were one of my only hopes against a demon." she thought to herself as she quickly pulled out her dagger and parried the demons next attack. She couldn't block the demons attacks with just a dagger, and surely couldn't stab its heart like this. "wait... i've got it" Incendia had a plan. But she needed a bigger spell than one she could cast without her jewels. But the technique she learned at the caravan could do it... So she danced.
Atrius heard a cry by Anna, and a burning sound. He stood up as quickly as he could, and grabbed both of the daggers hidden in his vest.What was it? Dragons? Rogue mages? Demons? All of the above? Any of them worked for Atrius. The rush he got when he stood up against real danger was better than any substance he could get for any price. His eyes glistened against the camp fire, giving away his expectant look to any onlookers. He didn't mind. He did wanted to savour the feeling of being there until he absolutely had to go invisible. He heard them again, in the bushes, running, growling, looking, preparing to kill him at the first chance they got. It was like receiving sweet honey directly on his tongue. He heard a branch break behind him and he went invisible. Not quite as fast as he wanted, but fast enough to move without whatever it was seeing him. It was a demon, disturbingly humanoid looking. It was better this way, now he knew exactly where to hit. Before the demon got a chance to change his confused look at his failure to hit him, he made the demon in the neck, and then again in it's heart; well, where it's heart should be. Poor guy looked so confused. It didn't pour anything remotely looking like the blood he knew, and augh, it had an awful stench and horrible texture. He wiped it off with the demon. His friends-- the daggers, hadn't failed him. Imbued with only god-knows-what, it had costed him a small country, but it was worth it. No necromancer could go around unarmed. He hoped the rest of the group didn't realize his affiliation. It wasn't easy to explain why he turned to dark arts, and it was even more difficult to explain why he hadn't told them. He heard more branches breaking and bushes moving. He took a jug of liquid courage from one of his flasks, while remaining invisible. Tonight was the night.
Luke knew that he was going to die. He wasn't ready for it, but he could accept it. The demon raised it's blade to strike him down, to end him . . . and then it cried out and fell to the ground, dead. Lucas sat up groggily and forced himself to stand, ready to face the next demon. Deathblade had saved his skin back there, and Luke was thankful for it, but that didn't mean there wasn't still danger to come. He had to be ready. No time for thanks. The next few creatures that came at him were an imp, a fiend, and a few goblins. He took them out one at a time, taking up his sword in both hands and slashing at the imp, cutting it in half. Spinning around to face the goblins, he switched his sword to his right hand, casting a fire spell with his left and ending the life of two of the creatures. The third one he ended with a blow to the head. The fiend was tricky. It maneuvered around him like a dancer, trying to avoid Luke's deadly blade. He decided to switch tactics, flinging a few frost spells at the thing. It cried out when one of Lucas' spells actually hit it full in the chest, and the human smirked, proud of himself. He managed a quick look at his companions - Len seemed to be doing nicely, Deathblade was swiping at demons like a mad-man, and Icendia was . . . dancing? He wondered what she was up to, but had no time to figure it out, for the third and final demon lunged at him. * * * Anna took a deep breath to calm herself and slid around the tree, hoping to catch the demon off guard and take it from behind; however, that move didn't turn out so well. The evil creature heard her and spun around, its eyes flaring as it flew at her. She cried out and moved out of its way, pressing her back against the tree again and closing her eyes to clear her mind. And then she cast her Invisibility spell and the demon lost sight of her. It cried out in rage and turned its attention to Atrius. Annaleigh moved towards the magic-user as well, hoping to get out of danger's way.
Agnorth leaped to his feet, raised his shining warhammer high, and let out a near-feral battlecry. His warhammer radiated the light of a silver sun, forcing the advancing demons to recoil and hiss. Like a mountain range tumbling into the sea, he charged at the demons. His brought down his mighty hammer and sent the first demon flying, gracefully melding his first move into the next as he smashed downward into the head of his next unfortunate victim, causing it to disintegrate into smoke and ash. He nimbly dodged the enchanted blade of a fiend and quickly smashed it into oblivion. "TASTE THE FURY OF THE GODS, VILE FIENDS!!!" He shouted, ramming his hammer into the ground. A shock wave of holy light knocked back all near-by demons, all of which he quickly attempted to vanquish, though only managing to get two before they all recovered.
He saw two goblins charging at him, both of them had evaded his first fire spell and Len doubted another fire spell would work. "I'll have to use a control spell," Len told himself as he remembered Barobarg's lessons on those types of spells. He needed a strong one to take out the goblins. Len closed his eyes for a moment, sensing the magic around him and focusing on what he wanted to do. Len pushed his staff forward, allowing a yell to break his lips. His eyes broke open and watched as the Goblins were knocked back by an invisible force. The second of the two fell back against the sword of one of his blind combats, the blade piercing it's chest as the other fell into the other blind Goblins knocking them all over. "Yes!" Len shouted in happiness, ready to cast another spell as he suddenly became surrounded by a group of imps. "Ahhhh, help!" He cried, unsure what to do, he began to blindly swing his staff.
The demon was a good swordsman. Its attacks were strong and accurate, but Incendia was fast enough to dodge the attacks as she traced her feet through the dirt while dancing around the demon. Her movments were probably confusing it. Ahhhh, help! Len needed help, but Incendia already had her hands full with the demon. She spotted the bag of jewels that had been cut off by the demon. They were too far away for her to reach, but she ought to be able to kick them to Len. "Len! Catch!" she yelled as she twisted away from another one of the demon's slashes and kicked the bag into the air towards Len. She was almost done with her circle. She only need another foot or so; then it would be done. But before that could happen the demon managed to slice at one of her legs. "Gah!..." the blade easily sliced through part of leg. It wasn't bad; but it hurt. The demon raised its sword to finish her off as she fell to the ground. But it didn't matter now. She had just finished her circle.
Deathblade parried the attacks that were brought upon him, he managed to finally get a clear shot at the demon's heart and stabbed right through. Then gathering his energy he shot at it with his dark powers sending it into the night. Then he heard the cry of Len. Ahhhhh help! a bag of jewels flew through the air, but Len was too startled to notice. "argh you fool!" He jumped in and slashed away at the imps, and blowing them away with the dark energies. He saw the man still swingning his staff, he grabbed it and lifted the quivering man up. "Get ahold of yourself man! Prove your worth to these creatures," he said pointing at them with his blade, "be a true mage, forget what your masters taught you, forget the books, a true mage battles with his mind, with all his will, with all his strength! Unleash your energies, direct it towards your enemies, fire with all your might!" He dropped the man and yelled, "KILL THE DAMMED THINGS!!!"
"Ahhhh, help!" Luke had his hands full. Fighting a demon was hard work, and he felt his strength failing him. He blocked the demon's sword easily, but it was the creature's magic that he was more worried about. When it pointed its hand at him to cast a spell, Lucas ducked and drove his blade upwards, into the creature's heart. "Gah!..." Incendia was in trouble, and Luke rushed to her aide, but he barely made it five steps before another group of the creatures stepped in front of him, blocking his way. "Incendia, are you alright?" he called as he battered back his opponents with his sword. He hoped she wasn't in terrible danger, because there was no hope of him reaching her.
Agnorth swung his warhammer, hitting a demon's spell perfectly and sending it hurtling towards a group of goblins, on of which bust into flames instantly. The demon was momentarily flabbergasted, giving Agnorth just enough time to slam his hammer of divine fury into its chest. He then turned to the goblins, and was about to bring down his hammer when an imp caught him by surprise. He managed to swing his hip just in time, its sword barely scratching him, though leaving a rather large tear in his robe. He dispatched it quickly, and then began turned to the group of goblins, which were almost upon him.
Deathblade's outburst was frightening but at the same time Len felt pure gratitude for him saving his life. He spun as he heard his name from Incendia, seeing some gems flying through the air at him. He clumsily caught the bag with one hand, but found it to be upside down and several gems spilled out from the bag. He dropped the sack and picked up a single gem. "What am I supposed to do with this?" Len asked softly. He knew what magic gems were capable of, but he had never used one. Then he saw a goblin upon him, charging with it's sword drawn and ready. Len didn't have time to fight, only move so he shifted to his right. The goblin's sword struck, peircing through his left arm, cutting deep into his flesh. Len screamed, walking backwards as the goblin withdrew it's sword, ready to strike again. "Why would you do that... TO ME?!" Len cried, enraged and infuriated. These creatures struck without mercy. The stories were true, these were creatures of the deepest darkness. His raged fueled his power, growing every second. "BURN!" He cried and he stabbed his staff through the air. The Goblin's flash caught fire immediatley and it let out a shrill cry. Then Len proceeded to control it, knocking it back into the blind goblins and setting them on fire too. Len fell to one knee, in pain and feeling slightly drained.
Atrius accidentally dropped the cap of his flask. Nervous mistake, but it got the attention of another demon attacking Anna. This one was a bit smarter, it kicked around some dirt that got on Atrius pants. No need to worry, he just had to-- "Oh, God!" The fiend had been faster than he could think and it had cut part of his lower torso. He yelled, but dodged the next blow the demon sent him, making his blade stick into a tree. He took the opportunity to slash the demon in it's arm, and once again in it's torso. He hoped this things could feel pain. He kicked it on the chest, and it fell, it's arms opened. Even in defeat, it mumbled curses. He took the thing out of it's misery. But it was only the rush that was keeping him alive, and he let himself fall over to the side of a nearby tree, bleeding from his open wound. He couldn't fight like this. "Guess people are going to have to find out the hard way." He said, and with that, he held one his blades in front of him, and starting whispering in tongues he didn't understand. The corpses of the slain demons moved, shivering as if cold. Their skeletons moved beyond their skin, ripping out flesh and muscle in the process. When it was done, only the moving corpses stood by, their organs and flesh scattered on the ground. Guardians. He silently laughed to himself. The situation was absurdly excellent. If he hadn't been hurt, he'd be trying to get hurt along his 'faithful' minions. Oh, what a joy to be in the battlefield. He ordered them not to leave, in case more of their companions got here. He wondered if those foul creatures felt empathy for each other. How about disgust? Anger at their fallen comrades? Interesting thoughts for an interesting night, thought the bleeding man.
Incendia, are you alright? "Im just fine actually" Incendia thought to herself. this'd take out the demon and she'd have fire to spare. White Fire She muttered to herself. It isn't a spell, rather its a technique. White fire is the symbol of the Ignis line.It was ironic turning a fire spell, a clearly destructive nasty spell into something white and pure. And normally she wouldn't be able to conjure such a spell. She wasn't the true heir of the Ignis. Just the last heir. It was the magic circle that she had drawn in the ground while dancing that made the difference. It acted as a catalyst, it helped her to cast stronger spells, but it required her to draw a large nd complicated array to do so. That's where the dancing came in. It allowed her to draw the circle and dodge enemy attacks; usually anyways. If she hadn't kicked the bag towards Len it might've worked pefect, but this was good enough. Demons normally aren't affected by fire spells. But if her fire ate up all the oxygen that the demon usually used to survive; it'd perish. Hellfire And she'd still have some fire left over.
Luke continued cutting through the creatures until he finished them all off; well, at least the ones that had been attacking him. Now he went to aide Incendia, who seemed to be in the stickiest situation. "Are you hurt?" he questioned her while be-heading an attacking goblin. What was she doing? Hopefully she had something up her sleeve, or they were all dead . . . * * * Annaleigh watched in terror as the demons came back to life. Was that normal? What was going on? Were they friend or foe? They didn't seem to be attacking her, at least. All of the companions were scattered around the campsite, and the closest to her had been Atrius. But where had he gone? "Atrius?" she called, fearful of the newly-born demons. "Where are you?" Taking advantage of the situation of not being attacked, she wandered around, looking for the man. Did he have something to do with this?
Deathblade was getting worried now, Len had been stabbed in the arm, Incendia was cut in the leg, and Luke was partially wounded, and Scythe was no where to be found. "argh, you fiends are pissing me off!" With all his strength he gathered a rather large ball of dark energy and released it into the air, like falling meteors they crashed into the ground sending demons, goblins, and imps flying. There were still more, he couldn't keep this up forever. He yelled out to everyone, "we need to fall back and regroup with the others!" Just as he yelled this he parried another sword blow and sliced the head clean off of another goblin.
"Over here, dear." He called to Anna, just as the invisibility wore off. The cut had been deeper than he had imagined, it could have cut an organ. No worries, though. That was the phrase he lived by. He coughed some blood on the ground. At least both Anna and her were alright. Any demons would be likely to smell the dead and avoid this place, or else, they would get chopped up in pieces by his minions. He hoped the blood wouldn't stain his clothes; they were new and expensive. His flask was empty again. What bad luck he had.
Atrius appeared a few feet from Annaleigh, startling her, and she, too, reappeared. "Glad to see you're alright," she said rather coldly, and gestured towards the demons. "This is of your making, I suppose." At least they had taken care of most of the enemies, and these demons weren't enemies or they would have already attacked. But now Annaleigh had other things on her mind. Atrius was a necromancer? That had to be it. That was the only explanation. Being a priestess, she had been taught to despise all who practiced the dark arts. Of course, she couldn't really hate anyone, but still . . . Atrius was officially evil, wasn't he? "A necromancer. I was beginning to think that things couldn't get any worse," she added, frowning.
