The Legend of Renalta (IC)

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Alexander Reumann
Main group
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Blinking rapidly as he got on his feet Alexander's dagger found its way into his hand almost automatically. His senses slowly returned once he got his bearing and as soon as he realised he was not in immediate danger he went for his warsword lying a little bit further away. That had been magic. He had felt it. His magical resistance had flared up almost at the same time as a bolt of pure fear had. Next thing he knew he was on his knees right here with the screams of his injured and panicked horse coming through to his ears after the deafening sound of the explosion abated. Cold sweat ran down his spine as he saw the crater he had barely escaped, and suddenly he felt the pain from his landing settle in. When his hand clasped the hilt of his warsword however he banished all doubt from his head, or tried to at least. Reassessing the drastically different situation Alexander could see three more orcs facing down against Kouri and Baldrik, the old man from before nowhere to be seen. Zorn tried standing up next to him and Alexander ignored the horse's suffering with pain in his heart.

Instead, he raised his sword and charged the three new orcs, on foot this time. Approaching from their side he intended to surprise or overwhelm them with his charge or at least distract or intimidate them from engaging his more vulnerable companions. Knowing that the clattering noise of a man running in full white armour was hard to miss he screamed his challenge to his new opponents.

"Angesicht mich Sie unerzogen Monster! (Face me you ill-bred monsters!)" He yelled, wishing he had his poleaxe that was safely secured to the riding horse's saddle bags. The additional reach and weight would have been welcome allies in a fight like this.
 
Wanderer Rahim, Faolan Wether, Dean Hansen, and Mikan
@Limeypanda, @Holmishire, @Orion, @Brovo, ​
Rahim frowns at Mikan's momentary faltering, but says nothing and acts not upon it. He makes mental note of it though, as he focuses upon the situation below; trying to watch the approach of his compatriot and the battle at the same time. When all was said and done though, the Orc was slain, and his band was retreating. Caution was proving the better part of valour until an orc pointed out Amaia's presence. Rahim swore under his breath, but was quickly stopped from charging in as the Orc was dismissed by the Orc-slayer, no less.

Mikan was the first to verbally voice her concerns. Rahim's grip on his axe tightened, before he finally broke the silence. "This is a rare opportunity. This passage way should be clear for a time, so we should tell the main group to advance this way. Two should go and meet up with them; the rest of us should go and make sure Amaia is safe, and to find out who the group is." Pausing for a moment, Rahim looked between Dean and Mikan, before adding. "I would elect Faolan and one of you two. Mikan will be quicker, but Dean will make stealth impossible for the trio that remains, if it is required. Decide amongst yourselves." And with that, Rahim hefted his axe onto his shoulder as he began to move down the hill after Amaia; making no effort to conceal himself any further.

Faolan glances between Dean and Mikan, evaluating each of them quickly. After a few moments' hesitation, he trods over to Mikan and nudges her hand, before motioning with his head to his back.

Dean had moved closer to the edge as he overheard Amaia had been spotted, he prepared his bow to fire an arrow, but the others didnt seem as panicked. As he peered out into the valley once again he saw things were improving at least mildly. The Orcs were clearing away, leaving them with seven unidentified humans. Dean breathed relieved for a moment, as Rahim got up to go introduce himself. Dean was about to object to his leaving, but imagined there was little he could do once the man set out on his way.

Faolan nudged along closer to Mikan, making clear his own intentions of following through with Rahim's plan and choosing Mikan as a partner. Dean broke with a small laugh as he tried to figure out what to do. "Is this what you had in mind? Not much time to plot, so I say we come up with something quickly."

Mikan pets Faolan's head uncertainly, not knowing if he would like it or not, and turns to look at Dean eye to eye. "Go back and arrange an ambush, Dean. I'll try to encourage these people to head back to Kouri, one way or another. I've been bait before, and I'm sure I can pull off the panicking damsel, spewing valuable information better than you." Mikan's typically playful tone seemed suppressed under an eerie sort of pseudo-professionalism.

It seemed she wasn't leaving it up to negotiation, as she turns and follows Rahim at his heels. It seems the only choice given to Dean was whether or not he would go back with Faolan.

Viewing the issue as completely closed Dean begins to walk back towards where they had stowed their horses. As he began working the knots to free his horse he paused a moment to look to Faolan. "If you'd rather stay with Mikan and the others I'd understand, I hardly think it'll prove much difference if I travel alone or not, and you may be able to offer more help to them than me." With the knots undone, and his horse freed he swung his leg over the beast and started on his way at a quick pace, eager to make good time in regrouping with the others. Despite his offer, Faolan ran alongside Dean and his horse—perhaps just as eager to reunite with the others.[/hr]
 
Guilt blossomed in Kasienka's stomach as she saw her shots miss and the orc's attack unfold. She could hear the screams and muffled grunts, and knew that it would be her to repair them when the battle was done. To atone for her mistakes. Until then... A fire was lit behind her eyes as she readied another arrow and charged it. This time instead of attempting to seek a victim, it would steal. She hated the spell, but now it would be more effective than not. Should it find its way to kill her target, she would receive some of its dying energy. It made the death quicker and painless, but it was still dark thievery in her eyes. Lining her sights up with one of the few remaining targets, but not the mage as she didn't want to repeat that embarrassing shot, she fired and prayed that this time she would actually make a difference.
 
Amaia and Jennifer of the Silver Shields
A collab with @Brovo​

Though she heard Mikan say something foreign to her, Amaia didn't turn back to ask about it. There would be time for that later, and she needed to move quickly to get there while the fight was still going on. She worked her way forward as quickly as she could while remaining quiet and unseen, but by the time she got close enough to poke her head out and watch the fight it was already done. That alone was damned irritating, but even worse was hearing the orc yelling behind her. She reached for her blades, but then let them go a few moments later when the armored woman saved her ass by sending the orc away.

Amaia stood from her crouching stance cautiously, keeping her hands within quick reach of her daggers but not close enough to look an imminent threat. There wasn't much to see of the woman in plate, but what she saw she liked well enough. She liked what she heard even more. "Oh, Silver Shield?" Amaia grinned and returned the bow, with her full upper body rather that just the head as Jennifer had done. "I've heard good things about your group from the witch hunters of Liveria. I'm Amaia Nekane, monster hunter by trade. If you're willing to help, my friends and I could use it. We're trying to get through the mountains to Rheinfeld, and when we saw your fight I came for a closer look to see if you might need some help of your own." Amaia gestured toward the orc corpse and gave a little laugh. "Not that you needed it, obviously. Nice work there."

Jennifer glances between her allies. They were all armed, though not as heavily as she was. "You have friends in need of aid? Ah. We can help you across part of these mountains... Unfortunately, this is only a small clan of orcs. There are two other, much larger clans closer to Rheinfeld which we have not won the right to travel through." She then looks past Amaia, her eyes scanning across the hill where the rest of her group was hiding. "Where are your allies?"

Amaia pointed over her shoulder with a thumb. "Keeping out of sight on the other side of the hill. They'll probably be on their way here once they see the orcs are gone and you haven't taken me hostage or anything." Glancing toward the path the orcs had taken to leave, Amaia frowned. "Those two larger clans sound like a problem though. Will they just let you duel your way through like this group, or is it gonna be tougher than that?"

"Much tougher." Jennifer replies bluntly, as she kneels down by some grass and starts cleaning blood off of her blade with a white handkerchief. It was coated: It took multiple heavy blows to kill the orc it seemed. "They have more champions, and they are more powerful. They have potent mages who have their own styles of magic, capable of flinging men off of mountains like rag dolls. There is a reason the Templar do not lightly attack them, nor have found a way to completely vanquish them." She stands up after cleaning off her blade. Shaking out her handkerchief, Amaia would feel a little bit of magic flow from Jennifer, and the blood simply evaporates away from the piece of linen. "It is a shame, really, that such monsters are left to breed, but I know naught how to remove them without harming the innocent."

"Yeah, it really is a shame. If I had my way they'd all drop dead today, damned filthy creatures." She had seen far more powerful magic, but nonetheless Amaia found herself somewhat impressed by the minor display. She'd never met someone who was strong enough to run around in plate and swing around a big sword and use magic in a sophisticated way. It was an amusing novelty. "Any chance of getting by without a fight? Maybe some path through the mountains that they don't know about? You Silver Shields come from Rheinfeld, if I'm remembering it right, and you had to get past them some other way to be here without having already fought for the right to pass through their lands, right?"

"We had an angel to help guide us this far. He has, however, diverged away, as he was needed elsewhere." The woman sheathes her blade, and puts away her handkerchief as she motions over one of her fellow soldiers. They pull out a map and compass, and hand it to her, as she uses the compass to orient herself in the right direction to make the map useful. It seemed she was more intent on analyzing the situation as a whole from a purely tactical standpoint, though a hint of empathy for Amaia could be seen. "We could guide you to this point." She references a singular point on the map, about halfway through the mountains. "After that, our protection would no longer be particularly useful for you. As for avoiding conflict..." She grimaces. "The only way to do that would be to appeal to the other factions that live mostly in secret upon these mountains, but their isolationism is what preserves them from the Orcs. So all I can recommend is to fight smarter and be ready to lose some of your own as inevitable casualties."

"Oh wow, an angel." Amaia let out a low whistle, hoping she'd sounded awed rather than terrified, or at the very least that if any of her sudden onset of fear was made apparent in her voice that it would be taken as that of a gods-fearing adherent of the faith. She listened to the rest of the woman's talk with a growing sense of trepidation. Angels were supposed to be out hunting for Kouri, so anyone working with them was obviously not to be trusted.

Amaia steeled herself to try to hide her fear once more, attempting to sound merely worried instead. "Well that sounds like an unpleasant road. I, uh, I'm not really the decision maker of my group, I just kind of scout and help out. I think I'll let my friends decide whether or not to risk it, though right now I'm really liking the idea of going back and taking the long way around the mountains." That was only half true, but it was the best she could come up with to stall for time. She turn halfway around, looking to the hill in the hopes that the others were on their way and resolving to go fetch them if they were not. She could only hope that one of them might have some good ideas about how to handle this problem.
 
__________Before the mountains________________

Linston arrived at the meeting, listening to the parties debate upon the best choice of which way to go. He heard multiple ideas that might work well, but couldn't form a strong opinion towards one idea or another. Of course, each one had its own pros and cons, which Linston felt he had no right to speak on, as he had but recently joined this band. Eventually, Kouri made up her mind, seeming to have set her mind strongly to this decision. He nodded as the decision was finalized, letting the group's disputes about it go without comment.

Linston went directly to the horses, letting the others choose their horses first. He didn't need to worry much, since they would all work well enough for their purpose. Once everyone chose one, he tried to remember what each person chose, hoping to remember so that he might be able to understand them a little bit better. As he finished with that, he found a horse for himself. He was less than practiced with horses themselves, but had heard general ideas and suggestions throughout the stories others might have shared.

__________At the mountains, before the groups split up and set off________________

Still trying to learn and understand those that also were in this group, Linston left the talking to the others, knowing he hadn't much experience with tactics and planning. Along with that, he had only a faint idea how he might make the other listen to him as he had joined their group, and basically had yet to say hi to a single one of them. He would attempt to fix that soon enough, but for now, important matters were at hand. He listened to the others talk about their suggestions to scout or use a hidden path, curious about the tactical prowess that the others would wield. There seemed to be a high expectancy to have to fight, which was not something he knew well, but hopefully he could use what he had learned to keep himself alive on this journey.

_________After the split____________

There was a small group that had agreed to go ahead. Linston had thought about offering his aid, but he knew little of how to avoid attention, and the best he could do was illusion magic, which wouldn't help when a mage would spot them. Of course, it would help enough to hide identities, perhaps, but would definitely lead to suspicion. So he left himself silent, following the group with little to no word on what they should do. There were many there that looked like they had seen enough battles to know better than him, his time to help would come when words might work better than weapons.

_________The battle begins_________

Linston, curious about the person laying on the ground, had tried to get a clear view of the body, letting the princess and her other followers do their thing. He felt like he had started off his time in this group as simply a shadow, but he hoped he could change that soon. He didn't dare to talk much quite yet though, as he expected to not notice if there were a spy watching, and wouldn't want to let another illusionist learn too much about everyone, and thus be able to act as them. As Kouri had proceeded to start to manipulate the body, Linston heard the click, and frowned, moving back slightly, only to feel the force of the explosion blow him from his place. He landed a short distance away, hitting the ground and rolling over slightly. His mind was dazed by the sudden force that had thrown him back, as well as the force of hitting the ground, but his mind focused enough to use his illusions just enough to change him into what looked like a rock until he could regain his composure.

Battle cries seemed to resonate through his mind as he tried to slowly turn over to see what was going on. Linston wasn't back to full ability after the explosion, but could certainly see what might be going on. He saw the others in combat, fighting for their lives, and then magic cracking the ground. He didn't want to feel the force of an offensive spell of any sort right now, and quickly moved behind a tree, letting the tree take what impact reached him. He had been knocked just far enough away that it wouldn't greatly affect the tree or him from behind said tree, but he still understood the force of the spell had been strong. His mind finally clearing some, he stood, leaning against the tree slightly and looking around it at the battle before him. He had missed a lot, and had been lucky to not have been killed already with his careless he had been so far, but now, he could finally join in the battle. He unsheathed his short sword, looking for any signs of an easy opponent to target.

Linston spotted a man charging with a sword towards a group of three. Distraction could improve upon this attack, probably. He began to rush forward, his mind clear enough for an illusion of more potent results than a temporary change of color. As Alexander had been rushing at the three goblins, Linston created an illusion that would look akin to a flaming arrow heading in the direction of the goblin closest to Alexander. As the illusion went forward, he raised his short sword in front of him, in the hopes that he could defend anything coming his way already.
 
Cennick had just managed to pull his blade from the orc's limp body as the former horseman started shouting orders, he didn't know who Tahlia was and the last he saw the elf had retreated up a tree. Still, the duelist didn't see any reason not to engage their aggressors and prepared to receive the charge alongside the armored figure. Or at least he would have had the earth not opened up and belched stone and orcs in every direction, Cennick only barely able to scramble out of the way of one of the latter as it came crashing towards him. He spared a quick moment to inspect the corpse to ensure that it was, in fact, dead and turned his full attention back to the living orcs heading his way, preparing to side step their charge and hopefully get a slash on one of their sides.
 
Baldrik Larsson had it rather simple after having the lizard pull that Orc off him- saw someone too close to Kouri for Baldrik's liking, legs frozen, bullet in chamber, orc falls over. He quickly reached over for another round, and began to chamber it up properly as he heard Kouri's exclamation. He smiled deeply before saying "By all means, Mes- Karah, I'm more happy to be on yours." before swiftly finishing up his reloading by filling up the side-chamber with an appropriate amount of gunpowder. However, he was surprised when Kouri suddenly grabbed him and held him relatively close. He heard the explosion, and felt it's force even from behind the shield that Kouri had made. She had just saved his life, just as she would everyone else in the lands of Renalta. Baldrik looked over at her,  his eyes clearly admiring her, before quickly standing up straight from behind the shield. He saw the horror that Kouri's eyes had seen, and heard her muttering. He quickly responded "Don't worry, we will fix him once the heat of battle has ended. Until then, we fight them back... and speaking of that." He had heard Kouri's command, he pointed his gun to the orc on the left, and aimed calmly for him. "Witness the power of my god, you filth! Surrender or you fall like him!" and quickly fired off a round towards the orc, before standing on guard next to Kouri.
 
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Samuel Mourn de Vandestryker en Karnarvon the 4th.​


Samuel looked at the Orcs. "Ard. Kill the Orcs!" He said looking for cover. This situation was untenable... he needed to expand his options, or at least find a way to keep Waral summoned, perhaps he could be with the right tools, but he didn't have them... But then the best defence he could think of occurred to him and he scrambled up the Turtles shell and lay flat upon it.
 
When the orc cast his spell, Kalemn's movement faltered, shock and awe urging her to flee. But a Weller wasn't so easily intimidated, she reminded herself, and crossed the remaining distance between her and the still unaware mage. One didn't need unnatural skills to be dangerous. Fingers tightening around the hilt of her sword, she raised the blade above her head only to bring it slicing back down at the orc's exposed head.
 
"My name's Baldrik Larsson, son to Helga Larsson and Reknor Larsson. The Sword that I and my treeline has carried for generations lies before you, from the time in which our ancestors served you, until the present day. To us it symbolizes the vow that was laid down to us from our Ancestors, and how we would serve the rightful heir to the lands of Renalta. By presenting it to you, I wish to serve you in honor of my ancestors and those who came before me, and to ensure that the kingdom of Renalta rises up once more from it's ashes. If you choose to accept me, I promise loyalty to you and whoever it is that you call an ally. That is, as long as you'll accept my aid, your highness."
-Baldrik Larsson, Page 2.​

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Main Group​

Kalmen would find herself easily able to slip past the foliage, and though there was a slight indication at the last moment that the orc mage heard the blade moving toward his head, he was nowhere near fast enough to counter the effect of cold metal ripping through his flesh. He slumps lifelessly to the ground, noiselessly, though not without making the injured orcish crossbowman cry out in fright at the death of his leader. Something the other orcs doubtlessly heard, briefly, before one of Hanus' throwing axes finds its way into the crossbowman's throat.

Baldrik's gun goes off, ripping through one of the charging orcs, though not putting this one down as he stumbles momentarily in pain, blood rolling down from his chest wound. The sound would echo throughout the valley, with Marcus growling angrily. The first shot had been noisy too, but two shots in a row would make it easier for others to discern their position. Kasienka's arrow flies over his head and strikes one of the orcs in the torso, but it's not enough to put the orc down immediately. Her enchantment also seemed to fail, as she felt nothing return to her. Marcus raises his shield, ready to stop the incoming charge, only to watch the three orcs all stop and turn to see James' bird flying overhead of them. Beatrice caws, loudly, and the orcs immediately start to flee, panic in their eyes. They run past Hanus and Kalemn without trying to fight them—they were simply no longer interested in dying.

The nearby, magically attuned, would feel Beatrice imbued with a large amount of magical energy—an illusion spell which had been charged over time.

Linston would find his pseudo-arrow dissipating near the presence of Alexander, whose magic resistance weakened all spells around him indiscriminately. Nonetheless, it seems to momentarily take the attention of one of the orcs, who stops and raises his arms in self defence, only to find the arrow vanish completely upon striking him. His confusion is quickly ended with Alexander's blade impaling him.

This left two orcs, who continued running toward Kouri and Baldrik. Kouri throws a blast of ice from her hands and knocks an axe out of one of their hands, but it doesn't stop their running, and as she braces to be struck by the disarmed orc, the two merely kept running on past them. It seemed they, too, were entirely demoralized. Between the rapid deaths, Kalemn's execution of their leader, and James' spell on Beatrice, it seemed that these orcs were done with fighting.

The princess seemed rather thankful for this, as a sigh leaves her lips. Her knees shake, though she manages to carry herself weakly to Sisera's side. "Sisera! Stay with me!" Her voice shook as blood continued to run from the open wound on her forearm, showing no sign of slowing. It seemed she needed medical assistance too, though didn't realize it, as Alexander and Kalemn would both recognize signs of battlefield shock in her. "I need a healer here! Immediately!" Kouri yells out to everyone in the area.

Hanus, meanwhile, pulls his throwing axes back to him with their magical return enchantments, then turns and moves rapidly toward Kasienka. He looks up at her and motions for her to come down, though she would feel magical fatigue running through her. "The group needs your aid!" He reaches out to her, ready to catch her if she should fall: She had cast several spells in rapid succession, two of them slowing attacks, three seeking out a target, another attempting to steal life force—not a small feat.

Marcus keeps his weapons out, and looks around at the group. "Brief, but bloody." He mutters under his breath as he then glances toward Kalemn and nods. "Good thinking." His eyes then fall to Cennick, as he felt he had no hope of making Samuel listen to his commands given Kouri's state. "Check the bodies for any sign of a clan insignia, or list of orders, or anything of that nature. We need to know if they were waiting for us specifically, and who they may work for. After that, do what you feel is necessary." He then turns and glares up at Kasienka: She could feel a great deal of irritation heading her way. "We will need to talk later. Your strategies are reckless given what you can do."

James bursts out of the woods on horseback, and with a simple flick of his wrist, Beatrice suddenly flies out and over the small patch of woods. His eyes look over everyone, until he spots Tahlia. A look of relief seems to reach him as he motions for her. "If you have any way of aiding with healing, now is a good time. We will need to move out in a few minutes, with or without our wounded."

A few moments later, after all was said and done, Dean and Faolan would find themselves cresting the last hill between the scouting group and main group. Though the edge of the light woods obscured their vision somewhat, both Dean and Faolan would be able to tell that a skirmish had just taken place...

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Scout Group​

Jennifer glances past Amaia as her allies move closer to them, and she nods her head appreciatively. "Good that they approach. Once they get here, we can speak further of--" A loud sound, much like distant thunder, would reach their ears. Jennifer pauses. After another half a minute of silence, the same sound rings to their ears once again. It came from the direction of the main group. She unsheathes her weapons and motions to her allies, as she looks at Amaia with a steeled determination in her eyes. "It sounds like another group is in trouble. This discussion will have to wait until we investigate this disturbance."

As Mikan gets close enough to Jennifer's group to notice the various symbols on their equipment, she heard the gunshots. Seeing Jennifer moving toward them, she looks at Rahim quickly, then speaks to the group. "Silver Shields... They're servants of the Gods. They must not know about Kouri, or at least, don't know about us travelling with her... This is not good... We gotta try and slow them down! Kouri doesn't need to be fighting two enemies at once!" Her tone was hushed to try and prevent Jennifer from overhearing, though she seemed suspicious of Mikan's whispers. Mikan waves to her and giggles. "Hey! It's nice to see friendly people here, and--"

Jennifer interrupts Mikan, her tone is condescending. "Schweigen. Sie sind offensichtlich von unreinem Geburt, und Sie Ihre nicht-menschliche Hälfte verstecken. Nur jemand, der Tod von den Gerechten fürchten würde so etwas tun. (Silence. You are obviously of impure birth, and you hide your non-human half. Only someone fearing death from the righteous would do such a thing.)" Mikan hesitates, then scratches the back of her head and giggles again, as she intentionally stops Jennifer by stepping in her way. "Mein Großvater bekam herum. Ich bin vor allem menschlich... Sie haben ein scharfes Auge für diese Art der Sache! Vielleicht wenn Sie zu hart ein wenig urteilen? Ich würde mich freuen, weiter zu erklären, wenn-- (My grandfather got around. I'm mostly human... You have a keen eye for this sort of thing! Perhaps though you are judging a little too harshly? I would be glad to explain further if--)" The plate mailed woman swings the back of her hand and slaps Mikan across the cheek, though it didn't seem as though Mikan was trying to avoid it. She pauses, and looks at Rahim, bowing her head respectfully. "Foreigner..." She seemed a bit uncertain in her tone, though she clearly held more respect for Rahim than Mikan. "... Please, convince your inferior to step aside. I will not harm her, but there are others who may need my help, and I do not wish my time to be wasted by someone who hides their heritage."

Behind her, the eight men she traveled with rested their hands on their various weapons, as they felt tension building. Still, they seemed to have no desire to fight Amaia or Rahim.
 
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Alexander Reumann
Main group
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Swivelling towards the other two orcs after considering the first one dealt with Alexander found them retreating to safer havens. A quick look around the scenery of the ambush told him that most orcs were either dead or running, and that the fight was over. As usual the end of the fight was very abrupt. When one side simply realised they had no more chances at victory, and ran. A rout. Alexander lifted his visor and heard Marcus barking orders to secure the area. Good, that meant he could check wether or not Kouri was alright. He glanced over at Zorn and saw the horse struggling with its broken limb, and turned his head. Kouri was more important.

Still breathing hard from combat and the release from the confined vision and breath from his closed visor he knelt by the incapacitated old man and the young princess. He saw the gash on her arm and knew from experience that she would eventually pass out from bloodloss if she was not treated soon. Her voice was shrill and frightened, with good reason of course, and he recognised in her the shock and the behaviour of a man that had faced terror, and survived. The old man looked worse for wear. Much like himself he'd been flung over the path by the magical explosion but he'd also been shot by one of the crossbow-wielding orcs as well. A brief glance told him the quarrel had most likely hit nothing life-threatening, but he knew that the injury might be worse than it looked. He grunted. He was no healer. With practised movement he undid his helmet and both gauntlets and grabbed a mostly sterile rag of linen he kept in a purse on his belt for just that purpose.

"Lady Kouri, a moment." He said as he grabbed her arm and tied the rudimentary bandage around the wound with kind yet ruthless efficiency. That'd have to keep her from passing out within the first few moments, he thought and turned to the old man. He did have more medical supplies, all very basic and mostly for first aid, but those were in his saddle-bags. Looking at the old man's wounds, there was little he could do for him in this instant. Instead, he reached for his canteen and offered the wounded man some water. When he stood up again however he could feel his muscles protesting. The pain of his bruises were starting to settle in now the fight was over.
 
Initually he had ignored a gut feeling that the main party was in danger, writing it off as anxiety or paranoia. The first gunshot changed that. Suddenly his mind was buzzing with what might have happened. Was the threat still looming, or had Baldrik successfully handled it? Obviously whoever he had left with the others would have heard it too and wouldn't hesitate to investigate- anyone brave enough to face off against an Orcish champion fears very little.

It had been the second gunshot that had urged him along. To Dean it signified either the threat was worse than he imagined and they could require aid, or Baldrik was failing to grasp they weren't trying to broadcast their direct position to everyone in the mountain pass. Dean prayed there would be no third shot. As he and Faolan picked up the pace and crested the hill he came upon them, relief flashed in his face as he saw most of them still standing and able though obviously there had been a conflict here.

However it was apparent that not everyone was faring too well, Sisera in particular was having a rough time of this adventure, but there was little time to dwell on that. Dean could only guess how long Rahim, Mikan and Amaia could buy them. As he neared the others he addressed them so all could hear, but to no one in particular. "I don't mean to downplay what was surely some very inclement weather." he said rolling his eyes in the direction of Baldrik, and then jerking his thumb over his shoulder. "But there's more fun to be had ahead, and given the ruckus you've made I'm guessing they won't take long getting here."
 
Linston slowed to a stop as he saw the remaining orcs begin to flee. He lowered his weapon, closing his eyes and breathing in deeply. He sheathed his shortsword for now, and turned to Kouri, who seemed extremely worried about someone who was greatly injured. I don't have healing magic, so my best bet is to prepare us to get moving so we can get him to a healer, I suppose... He looked around, wondering what had become of his horse. He had been riding it up until... right about when the orcs attacked, after which, everything was a bit of a blur until a few seconds ago. There were loud sounds, shouts, and so on... but nothing of his horse, as far as he could tell. He looked around, hoping to spot it, before wondering if he should, instead, seek respite on another's horse. He frowned at the thought, as it would be difficult and cramped to try something like that, so he instead renewed his efforts to find his horse. He gave a quick whistle in the hopes he could get its attention, only to see motion in the distance. He sighed at the sight of the horse lazily walking towards him, before returning his attention to the injured. Perhaps I could make my debut by doing what I can to help.
 
Faolan Wether
@Holmishire.​
Leaving Dean to gather the men, Faolan moved quickly towards Tahlia. When he had volunteered in her place to scout ahead, he had thought he'd be ensuring her safety—apparently his intentions had had the opposite effect. As he approached her, however, she was quick to dismiss him, moving instead for the injured.

He stamped his paw into the dirt, frustrated.

Glancing around the aftermath of the carnage, he saw that their companions had suffered no casualties—at least, not yet. Left as nothing more than a wolf without a translator, he set himself to the only task worthy of the mutt he was: herding the horses that had wandered or fled during the battle.
 
The Silver Shields, feat: Rahim, Amaia, and Mikan
(@Brovo, @Jorick, and @Limeypanda)​

Rahim instantly stepped forward as Jennifer struck at Mikan. He was not quick enough to stop the blow, nor did he think it would have been wise to even try. Truth be told, stepping up at all was a risk. Rahim could not, however, abide the situation. He interposed himself between Mikan and Jennifer, putting himself between the two women. The whites of his knuckles tightening around the hilt of his axe was timed with the other eight men who rested their hands upon weapons, before Rahim slowly let his grip loosen. "None are inferior here. We only wish to travel the mountains." There was a sharpness to Rahim's tone; a barely hidden venom that all would hear. His gaze met Jennifer's without fear though. He knew she was a Silver Shield, and while he knew that the name was worth fearing; it was not within his nature to relent to others because it is the 'proper' thing to do.

Mikan notices Rahim's anger, and though she takes a couple steps away from Jennifer, there was a slight reddening to her cheeks as she clasps her hands behind her back and stares at the dirt. She mumbles something under her breath, and though Rahim couldn't hear what it was, he would at least understand that her tone was grateful if a bit confused.

Jennifer, on the other hand, merely met Rahim's gaze of anger. She tilts her head a little, and then glances toward Mikan. "Either you've been bewitched with strange magics I cannot detect, or you are loyal to a fault... I will assume the latter, and I can admire that." Noticing Mikan turn meek, she smiles, and continues speaking to Rahim, paying her no heed. "My name is Jennifer. Allow me to investigate this disturbance, and then I will be glad to help you across these mountains."

Amaia had stood by passively, watching everything unfold with hands resting loosely, casually on the pommels of her two large daggers. She'd made an effort to appear uninterested, eyes wandering away from the haughty woman slapping Mikan and Rahim coming to her defense, but all the while thinking about how exactly they were going to dispose of these Silver Shield assholes. Their best chance was to have superior numbers, and here Jennifer was practically demanding to go check out the noises that had almost certainly come from their allies.

Amaia put on a worried look, eyebrows scrunched together paired with a slight frown. "I think we should go with you to investigate that noise. Those orcs might come back if we wait here. I'd rather risk the mystery than the orcs." She looked to Rahim and Mikan, hoping they would catch on to her subterfuge without any further prompting.

Rahim let some more of the tension eke out of his form as Jennifer seemed to move past her distaste for Mikan. A part of him bitterly resented his inability to speak their tongue, because he was certainly curious about what was said. When she mentioned her desire to go and see to the loud sounds radiating from the other direction, Rahim interjected. "We could be walking into a host of Orcs. Perhaps that sound was a magic-user of some sort?" He paused for a moment, looking over his shoulder in the direction of the sound. He noticed Mikan behind him, staring at the ground and looking decidedly coy. It caught him off guard for a moment, and he merely stared for a brief time. He eventually cleared his head again though, an idea springing to mind. "I propose a temporary alliance. Your group is no doubt better than ours in martial combat, but we are likely better scouts." He indicated to the larger group; clad in armour and covered in bright metal, as they were. "We could go ahead and scout the threat. It keeps your group out of unnecessary danger, and allows us to repay the debt of your assistance." Pausing for a moment, he then added. "An ambush could be very costly." Rahim then turned to face Jennifer, before shrugging. "The choice is yours, of course."

Jennifer's eyes narrow at Rahim the moment he proposed they were superior at stealth. Yet, a momentary pause followed, as she glances back to Amaia. "... If that will allow us to aid another group such as yours, then yes. Scout ahead."

Rahim nodded at Jennifer. "Thank you for understanding." He then turned to Mikan and Amaia. "Alright you two, take point. I'll follow behind at a distance, in case either of you spot a threat. The Silver Shields can follow behind me." He hoped his intent was clear enough; with the two women 'scouting' ahead, they could act as a buffer; warning the main group so that they might prepare for the Silver Shields' arrival. Even if it were only a handful of seconds, it might be enough to hide the Princess or the others who would draw the group's ire.

Jennifer nods, then whistles for one of her men. He approaches, and bows his head, receiving her orders. "Edgarus, alios arcessere. (Edgar, send for the others.)" She seemed surprisingly fluent in the Noble tongue. She hands him a small device, which Amaia would recognize as a Liverian flare: Something the witch hunters used for long range signalling. The silver shield then runs away from the group, moving as fast as he can. Jennifer turns to the others, and motions for them to proceed. "Lead on. We shall trust in your guidance."

Mikan looks to Amaia, waiting, unsure as to what just transpired.

Amaia shook her head and started heading back toward the main group, beckoning Mikan to follow. After opening up a bit of distance from the others she quietly informed the other woman of her thoughts. "That looked like a flare, and the only reason to send someone off with a flare is to signal allies. Maybe more Silver Shields, maybe angels. We're gonna need to be smart about this or we're all gonna die here." Amaia quickened her pace, hoping to get to Kouri and the others with enough time to inform them of the situation before the Silver Shields spotted them all.
 
(A Collaboration between Orion, West and Brovo )​

Baldrik realised too late his mistake. In his eagerness to help the Messiah, he had instead drawn attention to them. God damn this load gun, and my itchy finger trigger... He quickly approached his restless horse, and took a tight grip on the strap that was attached to its mouth, pulling the horse towards him. He had to respond to them, now, before they came across the main group. He quickly hopped up on his horse before nodding to Dean- he hated his smug way of saying it, but he was none the less right. But he needed as much information as possible on the group, and he also had to make sure Dean oould somehow aid him.

"Dean, listen to me. Where are they, how many are they, what faction are they from, and are they on their way in a hurry, or taking their time? I must know if they are intending us harm, or seeking to help us. You left out quite a bit of details, and I must know every one of them if we can somehow counter them without, well, killing. They might be more reasonible than the Orcs that attacked us."

Dean looked almost surprised as the one to answer his warnings was none other than the fanatic himself. Calmly and with a grin on his face he dismounted from his horse. "Settle your stirrups and mind your tone 'Rik. I''ll not be chastised by the likes of you for this mess. You may recall I was not sent ahead on my own to scout, Amaia and the others saw fit to distract and slow the other party, and they may well succeed but with my being here and all... Well I couldn't possibly know what kind of rush they're in. Your two beckoning calls may well have shot any chance they had at persuasion."

"None the less they planned to attempt subterfuge the way Mikan told it. They were nine in number when last I saw them, but that's not to say there can't be more by now. As for their faction?" Recalling nothing but the woman and her companions being very well equipped he shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. From the distance we stood we could make out no markings on their armor, nor discern their fealty in regards to Kouri. The one I took as leader slew an Orcish champion quite handily, and all I can attest to seeing is a blinding flash of light."

"The real question though, is does any of that matter? There's no room left for being naïve, we can't hope that these travelers are kindhearted. Now is the time to set and spring a trap of our own, not ride headstrong to intercept them before they reach your precious Messiah. If they can be reasoned with? Wonderful, we can negotiate from a position of strength. If not? Then at least we didn't take any more stupid risks."

"Do you think Sisera can fight with full strength now, or Alexander? I even doubt the mage that was in those woods can still cast another spell." Baldrik pointed towards the people he mentioned swiftly. "We can not take them head-on without deaths, even if we were to ambush them! And does that make us any better than those Orcs we just slayed? If I talk to them, and show them I was the one making the noises, and me alone: I might still be capable of convincing them that there's no need to keep going in this direction. If that fails, so be it. But I'd rather avoid casualties as oppose to fighting against fellow humans." Baldrik had hold onto that one tight rule: Never fight, unless it's necessary. It's a disgrace against the Queen's Guard to just fight anything and anyone unless directly ordered to, and he was surely not going to taint his bloodline with such disgrace. He had to make sure it could be resolved by a voice, and not a sword.

"I can stage it that I was the only one around, and killed two Orcs. Or I can just ride to them and say 'Oh, hey. Yeah, was in a Caravan, got attacked, decided to leave it after realising how dangerous it was. Caravan's on the way back to the Trade Post, too dangerous to continue for them' or some abrupt line like that, but then you have to get everyone that's wounded up on those horses and be gone by the time they arrive. Either way, if we don't do something fast, they will come here, they will ask what's going on, and if they recognize Kouri, it's going to be another fight straight after it, and then someone WILL die. Unless the Messiah orders otherwise, I refuse to pose further risk to the group by staging an ambush against someone who slew a champion Orc!"

"Seems you don't give a shit what I say. Ask your Queen for permission and do what you want."

Baldrik Larsson looked over Dean, and nodded to his statement. That was true, he didn't give a rats ass about what Dean had to say. All journey so far, he had been rude and only looked down upon Baldrik, and he was tired of it. So tired, that he decided to let it be heard atleast what he was thinking regarding Dean. "Why do you hate me so much anyway, Dean? What wrong did I do to you, aside from declaring the fact that Karah over there is the same person that's going to bring order and peace into this world. Is it my origins that haunts you, or what in the hell's gates is it that you hate about me in particular? If you could atleast let me know, perhaps I could learn from it instead of just having to take spits from you regarding every decision I make."

Dean glanced from his work for a moment, but continued preparing his horse so that Sisera or another wounded might make use of it. "Bud, that's a chat I'll be more than happy to have, but now's not the time to measure our cocks. Who knows how many are on their way towards us, and we honestly have no safe alternative to avoid them. Magic traps on one side and a cavern likely crawling with Orcs on the other, and straight ahead likely closing fast the warriors. We have wounded to clear out of harm's way and a strategy to prepare." He made his way back towards Baldrik to try and clear a corpse from the path. Pausing a second he spread his arms out palms open, directing Baldrik's attention to the scene around him.

"Essentially too much work and not enough time. My belief is that negotiations with these people will be more likely to succeed if coupled with a show of strength and the element of surprise. So if you want to venture off to chat with a group we have no idea the intentions of, well you have my blessing and you should at least have the chance to speak your mind, they didn't kill Amaia and the others when they spotted them... Not immediately anyway. However I most assuredly don't have time to sit and stroke your ego or tell you that everything is fine between us. Time's running out though, so make up your own damn mind."

"Mhm... Your words bear the truth behind them, Dean. As much as I hate to admit it. I'll talk with Karah regarding my decision, and we'll see from there. And... It's just that, if we try to scare them up from an advantage, they might be servants of the gods. That means, they'll call in an Angel to track us down. I'd rather avoid having the entire group chased, and if needed, only one person. You know I only mean the best of the group, right?"

"If that's what you say you mean Baldrik then I suppose I have little choice but to believe you. I've spoken with but a few of those we travel with and gleamed little into the intentions of their hearts." He looked to Baldrik with a tired looking face. "So sure, you're extremely pure of heart, I concede that. But would you so needlessly take a risk and throw your life away if it didn't play out when a better option is on the table? If we stand as a group we fare far better than anyone of us on our own."

"Furthermore so what if they are servants of the Gods? Far better to get a jump on them before they get the chance to signal their Angel friend. If that's cold blooded I can't claim to be sorry, this is war if you weren't paying attention, and the Gods have deemed us and our allies unfit for quarter, so they should expect none for themselves. At least this way if they aren't servants of the Gods they'll be free to leave us peacefully alone and we'll be able to assess the risk of setting them free." He rested a moment, unsure what else to do to prepare short of speaking with others. He grimaced slightly, looking again towards Baldrik. "And are you really so paranoid that you have to call her that even while it's just us? Lords and land man. She's Kouri."

"I just do it for her safety. But, I guess you do have a point. I'll see what Kouri says regarding our division in plans, and I'll stick with her opinion on the matter, and... Yeah, I guess I am a bit prideful." Baldrik Larsson made the horse slowly approach Kouri, until he was next to her. He bowed his head down to her, before saying "Messiah, you might need to make a decision for me. Given the noises that I've caused, and Dean's report, there's going to be another group coming down here to investigate. If I go up there and tell them I was the one who shot, and show them two corpses of the Orcs, they might not continue going down, if we hide the corpses and you as a group. That, or we do what Dean wanted, and set up an ambush to try and negotiate with them. It's just that I fear they might be servants of the gods, and if that's the case... We'll see an Angel come down after us." Baldrik's tone seemed to change slightly towards the end, showing a hint of fear as the mentioned the Angel once more.

"Hm." Kouri takes a deep breath, and then sighs, her voice shaking a little. "We should try to negotiate. We do not know if they are our enemies yet."

"Mm. True. But they may recognize you. After all, Messiah, your face hasn't dulled from the memories of those who admires, or despise you. If they see you, they might turn violent and... I don't want anyone else to become injured when we're so far away from our goal, your highness."

"Please stop calling me Messiah." Kouri replies sternly, as she glances toward the melting ice around the place. "We need to regroup and stick together. If Dean thinks we can pull off an ambush, then we should go with his plan: He knows more about these incoming people than we do."

Baldrik was shocked at her response, looking at her for a few seconds as his mind began to reel back on what he did to cause such a reaction. After the seconds went by, he nodded vigorously to Kouri. He also proceeded to get off his horse. "Of course, Kouri. Then we'll do just that. I, must beg your pardon if I offended you, your highness."

"I... Just... We will talk more about this later." She continues to nurse her injury, appreciative of the help given to it already. "Let's get ready for Dean's plan."

"Of course, Kouri. By the way... since I caused trouble with the gun-powder, should I not use it for the ambush? I've got a sword, and a bayonet for the Gun, so I have other options as well." He looked over towards her injury, and couldn't help but feel remorse. He should've prevented that, and the injury that Sisera was inflicted with. Apart of the Royal Guard obviously means that you're supposed to be able to defend those you seek to protect... But, none the less, he was going to make sure this ambush would atleast work better than this battle did.

"People already know we are here... May as well use, all that we have." She motions to his firearm. "Use it."

"Alright, Kouri. I'll start with Dean's plans immediately then." He turned around and faced those that could still stand on their feet, and hollared out: yet not loud enough to scream, just enough to let anyone close by to hear him as he began to reload his rifle "Everyone that can fight, find a good hidding spot and hold it. Once these fellas come around, do not attack them all of the sudden. Just do what Dean wants you to do, and we should be able to work this out. Om vi gör det här rätt, så kommer dom vara som sil-stuvning då vi är klara, eller som bästa polare till oss (If we do this right, then they'll be like herring-stew, or best pals to us)." Once Baldrik had finished reloading his weapon, he looked around his fellow allies, looking around if anyone else was in need of aid before the ambush was to be made whole.
 
Cennick rummaged through the orc corpses in the same way a child might rummage through a plate of gruel. He picked up a fairly long, fairly sturdy stick and tried to avoid touching the fetid bodies as much as possilbe. He didn't even really know why he listened to the large man, he had no idea what a orc clan symbol might look like, besides, the various charms, markings and trinkets all looked the same to him: Crude and more often than not, just garbage. Still he soldiered on his low duty, he did agree to do it after all.

He spared a glance in the direction of the princess, half out of curiosity and half because the body he was inspecting was more viscera than orc and he needed a brief visual reprieve. Introductions were probably long overdue, but at the moment she seemed occupied with the strange man with the musket. He had tried to guess their relationship from afar and had so far ascertained it somewhere between personal bodyguard and sex slave, with a slight leaning to the latter as he seemed not to be a particularly confident combatant. Shrugging he return to his task, placing his stick under the gory carcass of the orc and pushed in an attempt to flip it. The stick snapped under the weight, sending a viscera soak chunk back at Cennick, who only barely managed to dodge.

He took that as a sign that he was finished and he went to retrieve his horse.

Luckily Nuelle was as stubborn as he was stupid and was utterly oblivious to the combat that had transpired and had stood where Cennick had left him. He mounted up and looked to behold another member of his party, one he had personally labelled as 'Grubby Swordsman', who had arrived from the scouting party bearing news of more 'fun' to be had. Cen shrugged, while Grubs' definition of fun needed a bit of tweaking it ws certainly more interesting that poking around orc carcasses, so he took off in the direction of the scouting party, not bothering to check if anyone was following.
 
Kalemn Weller​

Kalemn gave a wide bow in response to Marcus's compliment, sword spitting red as she flung her arm out behind her. Perhaps the man isn't as stiff as he looks, she thought. At first, she had taken his grimness and martial skill to mean he was also obsessed with honour. But several times now he had shown a preference for practicality over fighting fair. It shouldn't have surprised her; no sense of righteousness could completely erase the inclinations of his tiefling heritage.

Kneeling down, Kalemn quickly cleaned the worst of the blood off of her sword and onto the dead mage's clothes before looting the body. Most of it was useless. A bone dagger, a rat skull, the wooden staff. A crude note rested within a pocket, but Kalemn knew she had no hope of reading the message. No coin, and no good steel. Worthless savage. Tucking the note away for later, she looked around at the remnants of the fight.

Jutting outwards from the mage's body, a streak of shattered earth. Towards Kouri, large hunks of glistening ice. Surrounding it all, dead bodies, panicking horses, and trees cracked by magicked stones. It would be impossible to hide the signs of this fight, even if given a week. "Keep it simple," Kalemn declared, moving back towards the bulk of the group. "Even if we managed to talk our way out of this, we don't want to make it easy for them to remember us. So Hanus, Marcus, Kouri, Samuel, and probably LiWei should probably hide at the very least. Too obviously foreign or easy to recognize." Kalemn reached up to touch the burn scar marring her face. "Me as well, I guess. And if we fall back on a show of force, our most... colorful people showing up at once might help shock them."
 
A Gathering of Minds
Main Group ​

As much as he loathed to admit it, he eavesdropped as best he could on Baldrik and Kouri. Specifically because he knew that Baldrik would be referencing Dean in whatever he said. So it was with elation that he heard the Princess agree with him on the issue, and he stopped paying as much attention. It wasn't long after that that Baldrik exclaimed quite loudly to pay attention to Dean. Standing somewhat embarrassed by the sudden attention he may receive he tried to fight his nerves by speaking. "James' can your illusion magic shield others from sight?"

James glances at Dean, and a large smile creeps to his lips. "I can hide others from sight, but if they can detect magic, they will know something in the area is wrong... But, if you're looking to disguise how many of us there are in plain sight, I can do that."

Dean taps the side of his nose, indicating James' had the right idea. "My thoughts exactly. We can't risk having Kouri exposed and in the open whoever these people are. Move along the path a bit out of sight, take her, Sisera and Samuel with you. A concealed magical presence like that may split their focus and give them reason to pause eh?"

"Good, but, one... Issue." James states plainly as he glances around the area. "The two King's Rangers that were supposed to guard our flanks... They're gone. Whether permanently or temporarily I know not, and I have a... Rather, a sneaking suspicion, that we're being hunted. If we separate Kouri too far from the main group, that may be when our unknown pursuers strike."

Marcus glances toward James and raises an eyebrow. "If they exist."

James shakes his head and glances toward Dean. "Regardless, it will be a precarious balance to keep her close enough to be aided quickly, without tipping off our presence. My magic is strong, but a perfect illusion across multiple people in broad daylight is... Not easy."

"Stay close then. We'll find appropriate cover for Sisera and Kouri and you can focus on just concealing the two of them. You'll be well protected by the rest of us, and we can write off whatever suspicions they have concerning it as magical cargo we've hidden during their approach." He glanced at Kouri, realizing he had referred to her essentially as a burden. "No offence." He offered apologetically.

Kouri brushes herself off and looks at Dean, eye to eye. She pauses, and briefly seems defensive, though, relaxes quickly. "I have no desire to hide... If they choose to aid us, what then? Surely it would be better to hide others and have them ready to leap upon them if they should turn on me, would it not?"

"They already know someone's here, so they'll be looking for people." Gesturing to the bodies and the scene around them he glances back to Kouri. "And how many can we hide before they start to suspect we're concealing people? We may still hope that Amaia and the others are with this other group, and they could provide that same advantage if they've played their hand correctly. Im hoping to have Kasienka and Baldrik hidden in the tree line for ranged coverage." He shook his head as she spoke, not breaking eye contact.

"Despite your desires I'm going to insist you be concealed. Agents of the Gods will be immediately hostile if they catch sight of YOU, where otherwise we may be able to lull them into a false sense of security. Not to mention there's probably some kind of bounty on your head that any bandit wouldn't think twice in collecting. If fighting breaks out? By all means jump back into the fray, but in hiding you we're at least far more likely to get an honest idea of who's side they're on."

Kouri's eyes narrow, as a little bit of frost develops around the ends of her sleeves. It seemed she didn't like the response, though James' chuckling snaps her out of her weary ire. "You did say to Baldrik to follow Dean's plan, and I suggest you follow it. If they turn out hostile, we should exploit your range; not shove you on the front line." Kouri hesitates, and then looks to Dean. Her look was apologetic as the frost quickly dissipates. "You two are correct. I will... Conceal myself, with James." James clasps his hands together behind his back and grins ear to ear. "Perfect!" He glances around at everyone else. "I'll leave the rest of you to figure things out on your own. Oh, and Alexander..." James' tone turns a tad more severe. "...Stay away, or you will mess with my magic."

Samuel listened with amused interest, though concerned for Kouri, there was something about the Illusionist he did not like. "I'll join you and Kouri." Samuel said to James. "I may not be a fighter, but I have several summons that are should we need it in a hurry, your illusions may conceal us against normal sight, but not everything sees with just eyes," He 'justified' "But I will refrain from summoning anything right now, we wouldn't want to overtax your abilities." He said to James, semi mockingly.

Alexander found the plan to be an acceptable one. While everyone was discussing he had seen to his horse. Luckily it seemed that it was a clean and simply fracture that could heal. Over time. How they would pull it off to transport the horse was beyond him, but he wouldn't have to finish off Zorn quite yet. As he walked back, having followed the conversation Alexander sniffed when Dean implied Kouri was a burden to their party. She was. That was a fact. When the illusionist, one of the people that unsettled him the most of their party, turned to him and warned him to stay away in order to preserve his magic, Alexander nodded. "Fine." He walked over to his packing horse and shouldered the poleaxe he'd strapped to its packs and gave the weapon a few test swings. "Who will do the talking?"

Baldrik Larsson had understood the concept of the plan: Ambush them, have someone talk to them, if shit hits the fan: Fire at will. He still hated the fact that his advice was ignored, but... He couldn't possibly try to question Kouri, the Messiah, the one to bring order and peace onto his ancestor's home lands. And hopefully, put their spirits to rest at last. Baldrik began to receed between the tree lines when he heard the question pop up. Who would do the talking. actually? The plan was that the Ranged fighters remained in the tree-line, so Baldrik couldn't really do much when it came to fighting or talking, except just shooting. Thus, he simply shrugged and said to the group "Well, the one who makes the plan ought to know. I'd suggest someone with a silver-tongue, and without the hint of magic to them."

"I figure it doesn't matter so long as we all stick to the same story. We came from the west. We were hired by a private collector to loot some ruins." He said Gesturing to the loot in the form of Kouri and Samuel. "...And we're now returning the bounty to him in the Holds. Chainhold if they should ask. We don't know what's in the crates, but these Orcs got too curious for our likings."

"Above all else we don't know Rahim and the others unless they lead with that information. Even treat them a little unpleasantly to drive home the point, remember they could be watched for all we know." From the corner of his eye he spotted someone on horseback begin to ride from the direction he had just come. His hands flashed to his mouth and a sharp whistle escaped his lips, enough to hopefully grab the man's attention. "I like your eagerness, but it's probably best if we all meet this together. If you've got a better plan though, I'm all ears."

Cennick turned his head to face to the swordsman and by proxy his gathering of conspirators. He heard out the man and shrugged, "I didn't figure you the planning type, but if you're willing to approach this situation with a bit of tact I'm all ears." With a kick he turned Nuelle about and made way to the group, laying his eyes on James as he arrived, "Before I agree to anything I'd like to know what Jimmy here is contributing."

Dean felt a bit slighted by the comment leveled at him by Cennick. None the less, he kept recalling those no doubt on their way towards them. "Yeah, very clever, I'm a simple peasant. Moving on. James here will be shielding Kouri and Samuel from sight and we'll initially be trying to rush them along away from us. Should we find negotiations failing then we'll call on Alexander-" He said presenting the experienced soldier, and facing him for a moment. "I hope it's alright, but you'll rush their Leader. If you've got some way of messing with magic it'll give you an edge on her." Returning his attention to Cennick he continued. "Baldrik and Kasienka will open fire from the trees, and then rest of us will engage the rest of them. Hopefully anyway."

Rolling his eyes as the odd but capable-looking young man in front of him wallowed in false humility Alexander nevertheless listened to their proposals. When he heard that the woman leading that group was a mage, a sudden bolt of fear ran through his spine. He hid it perfectly well and manned up, thinking of his magic resistance, but also felt dirty for feeling the brief and instant desire to kill this woman based on that fact alone. "Right. A plan it is then."

"Isn't it obvious Cennick? My flair for the dramatic..." James replies with an exaggerated droll to his tone before motioning to Beatrice, his bird. In a moment, Beatrice simply vanished, though her caw could still be heard. "... And my own brand of usefulness that I would recommend not questioning. You should remember when last we spoke of my power, unless you wish to be reminded." Kouri glares at him, and ushers a little ice underneath his feet. He slips momentarily, and then quickly regains his footing. Kouri looks innocent as she turns away and looks toward Dean. "I would prefer to avoid violence if possible. Try to prevent conflict... Enough blood has been shed here today."

Baldrik Larsson looked over the group as he began to walk away from them in order to get into position. He felt his heart ache as he was walking away from Kouri, knowing full well that he wouldn't be able to protect her from any frontal attacks from the distance that he was told to hold. All in all, he had to accept this, and had to move on. As much as he hated being parted from her. His fate was tied in with hers, and so was his ancestors.The Sword in it's sheathe reminding him of the extent of their failings, it's weight bearing not only the weight of those it has slain, but also those that were killed whilst bearing it. He was terrified in a sense of what would happen if he would die while holding it, but he knew that he could not abandon it. It was the one thing making him different, the one connection, along with Kouri, that ties him in with his ancestors. Abandoning it, would be abandoning his blood line.None the less, he simply gave out one call after he was sitting atop a tree with a lot of leafs on his branch in particular, the branch's thickness big enough to support his weight and another figure if needed be. "Alright, I'm ready now. I'd suggest you guys giving me a warning before you go full out, as I might hit one of you if you rush in head first. So, anyone got a suggestion for a phrase before the guns go blazing?"

"You'll have your warning Baldrik. Alexander will start the attack, so if I call on him you'll know to fire." Dean replied loud enough for those around them to hear.

Cennick let out a sharp snort as the magician nearly fell over, "James, the last time we spoke of your power you displayed it on an unaware man while standing away safely on top of a hill, far from a distance he could reasonable defend himself. Now you're within easy striking distance and I suggest you cut the attitude while you remain so." He unsubtly patted at the sidesword at his hip, "Still, the princess is right. There's been quite enough blood today, so let us save our little feud until tomorrow."

"Anyways..." the duelist turned his attention back to Dean, "I apologize for the unpleasantness. As for the plan, it seems sound enough, a little bit too criminal for my taste, but I guess that when in bandit territory you do as the bandits do. However, I will not tank any action that may cost my honor. If there is to be a fight I'd prefer to face it head on."

Dean nodded as various people consented to his plan. He felt a spark of pride begin inside himself, but knew not to allow much more. He could be arrogant and confident later. What came next would require a clear head and a willingness to adapt. Regardless of how well he felt he had planned, he'd seen simpler things go terribly wrong.

"Say whatever you like, I wont lose much sleep so long as you do whats needed in a fight." He replied to Cennick while watching Baldrik take position, at least he'd come around to reason. Whether Kasienka would join him would be anyone's guess. The elf had proven a bit of a soft heart in Dean's eye previously, but then that was a recurring feature among party members it seemed. At any rate he once again began focusing himself, noticing Kouri speaking once more in his direction.

"But of course your highness. I'll do my best to keep everyone's head on their respective shoulders. Besides, there's no reason we can't be civil."
 
Tahlia Wether, Sisera del Azul, & Kasienka Ellarian
A collab between @Holmishire, @Slade, and @Seba.​
Heeding James's advice, Tahlia swept her legs over the side of her horse and dropped to the ground, quickly snatching her things from the saddlebag. As she rushed to the tree where Sisera now lay, she pulled out a small flask which she used to quickly clean her hands.

Kneeling beside the man calmly and with a comforting smile of confidence, she began cutting at his clothes with a small knife to get a better look at his wounds. The crossbow bolt sticking through his shoulder was obvious enough, of course, even before she cut away at the cloth surrounding it. However, there seemed to be some irregularity in the old man's breathing—he was clearly in shock, but from his hit to the tree, his shallow breathing could just as easily be due to obstructions to the lungs. Upon closer inspection, she could see one side of his chest was moving less than the other. She laid her palm on that side of his thorax. "Could you take a deep breath for me?"

"Not really, no," Sisera managed to cough out. He barely had any idea where he was or what was happening. The pain was simply too much to tolerate as he cocked his head back and let out a pained sigh. He didn't know what hurt more, the bolt in his shoulder or what he assumed to be broken ribs causing a constant rippling pain throughout his entire body. His eyes widened in panic as she took a knife to rip into his clothes. He tried to raise his hand up to stop her but could barely move it above an inch before it collapsed back onto the ground. He didn't want them to see the burn scars. He didn't want Kouri to see.

"K-Kouri," he mumbled out, trying his best to stay conscious as another wave of barely tolerable pain from the ribs began again. He made a weak groan.

She raised an eyebrow at his objections, but continued despite it. Upon further inspection, she decided some of his ribs must be broken, though his lungs had not been punctured. "Don't worry about your clothes, I'll sew them back later. But for now, I need to fix you." She grimaced as his scars became visible, and turned towards where she had last seen Kouri. "She'll be fine. Kasienka is tending to her."

Gently lifting him from the tree trunk, she glanced at the back of the wound. Having pierced through to the other side, the bolt was of simple design, and she thankfully wouldn't have to worry about the metal tip being dislodged. With the same knife as before, she stripped the shaft of its fletching, so that it was bare and straight. As she did, she called out to those surrounding her. "If anyone's got some drink stashed away, we could use it here!"​


Tahlia Wether & Baldrik Larsson
A collab between @Holmishire and @West.​
A while after the end of the fight, Baldrik would hear a woman's voice call out. "If anyone's got some drink stashed away, we could use it here!" The voice emanated from the Rheinfeldan priestess, who was at the moment tending to a wounded Sisera, groaning in pain as he leaned against a tree.

Baldrik Larsson knew that he had a drink available, but he was a bit scared of giving it away to people that weren't from the north. They can't handle their drinks, and those in the north always loved to get drunk to hide away from the fact they're hungry or that death's about to hit them. He approached the priestess calmly after having had his conversation with another fellow, and set his backpack down. "I've got one, but you had best take it easy with it. It's enough to knock a man of these lands unconscious in just a few swigs." He reached inside to take out what appeared to be some form of a hardened pot, with a cork on the top of it. He popped the cork open and handed it over to the priestess, revealing a white syrup looking liquid in the handmade 'bottle'. "So just be careful with it, I'd rather not have someone go under just by drinking what I drink."

The priestess turned to accept the drink. "For what I'm about to be doing, that sounds perfect. I'm grateful," she smiled up at him, before turning back to her work.

Baldrik couldn't help but look over the injuries that were presented in front of him. It was a bit shocking to him, that such a man like Sisera was brought down to his knees by falling from a tree with such force. He looked over Sisera's injuries, and the brew that he had just given to the priestess. "Hey uh, you think Sisera's going to be able to walk again? That looks like one hell of an injury."

"The bolt didn't pierce his spine, so." She glances at the man's legs, and for the first time, notices his twisted ankle. The petite woman continued to focus her care on the man's shoulder, however. "He'll be fine. Even if I can't patch him up completely, Kasienka should be able to do the rest once she's rested up a bit."

"Ah. That's great to hear..." He looked over at Sisera once more, before muttering quietly to him "Don't worry, you're not the kind of guy to just fall to something like this. I've seen weaker men take greater injuries than this and live. I'm certain you'll make it as well." He shoot a look over towards the woman's work, before saying once more, "Anyway, once you're finished, we'll need your help as well. As I said a minute or so ago, We're setting up an ambush against the group that's on their way here. And, yeah... We don't have a lot of time left, so I don't want to stress you, or make you heal Sisera only partially, but just be prepared for the worst."

Her voice was momentarily tinged with worry. "An ambush? We're not ready for another fight so soon..." Softly, she said something to Sisera that Baldrick wouldn't be able to hear, before addressing him again. "I'll do what I can to get him mobile, and then I'll join you shortly thereafter. Just you make sure the injured stay out of it. I don't want Kouri or Sisera worsening their condition."

"Yeah, well, Dean's plan is that we're going to set up an ambush, surprise them, and see if we can get them to calm down, or talk it through with them. It seems that Kouri also supports it, as oppose to my idea. And, I promise you, I won't let anyone harm Kouri like they have, and I'll try my hardest to make sure you fellas stay alive as well. Just stay close, and we should be able to do this."[/hr]
​

For a few moments, Tahlia was distracted talking to Baldrik as she accepted his offering. Finally, she spoke softly again to Sisera. "I'm going to push the arrow out your back. It'll take some time for the alcohol to affect you, so it's still going to hurt."

Sisera reluctantly drank the burning liquid, wincing as it slithered down his throat. He was not like his father in terms of drinking; he only rarely enjoyed the taste of wine and only then in more formal settings. But despite this, his head felt lighter; his delirium replaced by a reckless and loose numbness. Everything seem to stand still amidst his constantly whirlwind of a mind. It was too slow, everything was too slow and he was forced to process ever single painful detail. Every twitching corpse and every drop of blood on the grass, every frantic wrinkle in the faces of his comrades. He clumsily drooped his head and his eyes shamefully traced over every line of black and brown line of scar tissue that occupied his chest. Forced to stand still and gaze upon his utterly ruined body.​

Amidst eternal flames. A WORTHLESS BROKEN TOY OF A CHILD!

Having settled Kouri as much as she could for the moment, Kasienka hurried over to Sisera to try and get him back into one piece. He would be far better at calming the princess in any case. She saw that Tahlia had already made great strides with the man, and that at least he had been offered something that would make the experience a little less painful...

But what she could do would hopefully put him into a far better condition. "Sisera? Sisera look at me. No naps right now. I'm about to make things plenty better." She laid her hand on his chest, away from where Tahlia was working on the bolt, and started to focus on searching down to where the bones had bent and snapped where they shouldn't. To try and distract the man she began to hum, channelling what little energy she had left into knitting the bone back together and giving his lungs room to expand.

Sisera snapped his head back up and gazed into Kasienka's eyes. She could tell by looking at him that he was somewhere far away. His face was as pale and plain as always. But his dull brown eyes had a quiet ferocity to them.

"The Angel," he said slowly, letting the breeze pick up those words and dance around Kasienka's ears. "That Archangel," he lets out a elongated sigh as the magic begins to take hold on his chest. His body twitches for a few moments as Sisera's eyes rolled back and his teeth grit through the unpleasant experience.
YES BURN THE SKIN
"I will relish his tears." he slowly breathed out, tasting every word on his tongue and relishing the sound they made in the open air.

His body relaxed again and his head lowered again. His mind was on shutdown, too many things had put pressure on it and it needed time to recover. His eyes were open but he was in complete isolation from everything. He only muttered once under his breath, a memory of happier times that had jutted out of his throat.

"Don't cry. Dearest Little Kouri."

Tahlia set aside the drink, and positioned Sisera so that only half of his back rested against the tree, the other half with enough space for the bolt to come out. Motioning to Kasienka to hold him still, the elf restrained Sisera as requested. Tahlia placed the flat of her knife against the end of the bolt. Taking her staff in her other hand, she wavered it back and forth a bit to catch her aim, before finally sucking in a heavy breath and holding firm. With a loud crack, the wood connected with the blade of the knife, slamming the bolt most of the way through his shoulder. Tahlia quickly dropped her things and twisted around behind the man to pull it the rest of the way out.

She let loose a great sigh as she dropped the bloody projectile to the ground. "How are you holding up?" she asked Kasienka, pulling out a a cloth and pouring some water on it as she did. She quickly set about cleaning the wound. "I can bandage him up now, and if nothing festers by tomorrow, the wound can be properly closed then. But I don't want you over-exerting yourself now." She grimaced, glancing at where Baldrik had left them. "Especially not with another confrontation on its way."

Kasienka fell back to sitting and leaning back on her arms. She had taken care of him for now, but would have to finish the job after she had rested. "I fear I am beginning to dance with the devils. I cannot use much more of my skills today if I am to be useful to the princess for the rest of her journey. I have done too much." The elf took a deep breath to steady herself then looked toward the horse which was still crying in pain. "Yet I shall finish my duty for today. I will then otherwise require much rest. I have not extended myself like this in a very long time."

It took her a second to rise to her feet, but once she was up she was easily moving to the horse and laying her hands on it as well. She couldn't mend the whole wound, but she could remove the pain temporarily and make the leg capable of bearing weight. Once she removed her hands she felt woozy, like the world was spinning around her. Rather than let the Princess see her in this state, she began to move towards the tree where her horse still stood and Hanus recovered.

Applying some dried herbs and taking out some bandages, Tahlia quickly set about wrapping Sisera's shoulder. Later, she would need to make a proper poultice to keep the wound healthy, but for now, the herbs she used would at least staunch the bleeding. She also pulled her cloak over her head and wrapped him in it, covering the tears she had made in his clothing.

Turning towards where Faolan had gathered the stray horses, she emitted a low whistle to catch the attention of one in particular. Both Faolan and her horse trotted towards the two of them, and with the wolf's help Tahlia lifted Sisera into a seated position on the horse's back. Finally, she lifted herself up behind him, doing her best to keep him steady, before leading the horse towards Kouri and James.

She motioned for James to take him. "Be careful—his ankle's been twisted. Lie him down, and please don't let him fight." She smiled sympathetically down at Kouri, from where she was seated on her horse. "His condition is stable. He'll be fine soon enough." She glanced back at the others, preparing for the arrival of the scouting group, and frowned. "Would you rather I stay with him, or join the negotiations?"​
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