Maka took a flask of red liquid from her pouch and gulped it down. The magic of the potion staunched her wounds, but they were still open. With a satisfying gasp Maka wiped her mouth and tossed the flask to the side. "I wish they just made drink version of these that was cheaper. I love the fruity taste!"
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Quasit shrugs at Findurel's praise as she wipes off her blade and stows it.
"It's pretty easy to stab a guy when he's entirely focused on the giant ape trying to rip his face off." she points out. She looks up at Chest Thumper and gives him a 'thumbs up' gesture. "Good job buddy! Friends, eh?" she says.
Then she sits down in the doorway of the blockhouse and pulls back her hood a little, wiping away the perspiration. She's still panting from all the breakneck running. She leans back against the door and exhales deeply and looks up at the dark snow-filled sky for a while, then notes a crocodile in a sweater go sauntering past her toward the ranger.
She holds up a fist. "Knock 'em dead Izzy." she exhorts wearily.
"Of course," Kalchine answers Fin.
"I've only got a bit more healing magic left, today. I'm going to save the big one for an emergency," he continues.
He also searches the bodies of their fallen opponents for any healing items, using a spell to detect magic to aid his search.
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Chest Thumper gives the fallen body of their opponent another couple punches and hoots. He rises up on his hind legs, apparently about to demonstrate how he got his name when Quasit speaks to him.
He gives a questioning grunt then reaches out and grasps her thumb. He could hold her whole fist in there so that digit disappears completely. He gives it a little shake. Well...little for him. Likely bone rattling for Quasit.
He then lets go, gives another grunt and smashes the body at his feet one more time, idly.
"Ahhh I think he likes you Quasit!"
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Quasit's arm is nearly yanked from its socket as Chest Thumper shakes her thumb, but the gestures makes her giggle with delight anyway, though the follow-up smashing makes her jump a little.
"Yeah, he's a big softy, isn't he? When he's not murdering. I had a boyfriend like him once. Real sweetheart when he wasn't beating people up."
Quasit's arm is nearly yanked from its socket as Chest Thumper shakes her thumb, but the gestures makes her giggle with delight anyway, though the follow-up smashing makes her jump a little.
"Yeah, he's a big softy, isn't he? When he's not murdering. I had a boyfriend like him once. Real sweetheart when he wasn't beating people up."
Maka gave Bulvi a kiss on a the cheek. "Yeah, those are nice!"
"Ahhh I think he likes you Quasit!"
"I've always said he has good taste," Kalchine ears immediately rise almost straight up and shake before he looks away and patently concentrates on his search.
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Sakitu floats down to Fin, Quasit, and the others. She smiles when Fin winks at her and then tries to wink back. She hasn't quite mastered the wink.
"So. Do you think that's the last of the bad guys we'll have to fight?" She looks around at the raging battle. "I mean, they're all still fighting but maybe they have it under control."
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"It's pretty easy to stab a guy when he's entirely focused on the giant ape trying to rip his face off."
Fin arches an eyebrow. ”If you say so, Q…but killing is never easy, especially with trained warriors like these…you sure don’t take compliments easily, though…”
"Of course," Kalchine answers Fin. "I've only got a bit more healing magic left, today. I'm going to save the big one for an emergency," he continues.
Fin nods in gratitude for the healing. ”Thank you, my friend, you’re handy to have around in a fight…”
Sakitu floats down to Fin, Quasit, and the others. She smiles when Fin winks at her and then tries to wink back. She hasn't quite mastered the wink.
"So. Do you think that's the last of the bad guys we'll have to fight?" She looks around at the raging battle. "I mean, they're all still fighting but maybe they have it under control."
Fin smiles fondly at Sakitu as she tries to wink. ”Could be wrong, but I don’t think so, Hlao-roo. I think the Drakelanders probably have more powerful forces they’ve yet to deploy…we’ll soon find out either way though. You fought well, Saki…but stay alert…and stay safe…”
"Almost forgot I have this, too," Kalchine mutters, his ears flicking again as he draws a wand from a loop on his belt. It has a red + overlaid over the sigil of the keep emblazoned on it.
"Standard issue for medics." He continues as he activates it and touches it to Fin a couple times.
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"So. Do you think that's the last of the bad guys we'll have to fight?" She looks around at the raging battle. "I mean, they're all still fighting but maybe they have it under control."
"I wouldn't count on it. These mostly feel like probing attacks, looking for a weak spot. My guess is that they're holding back the big punch until they find their opening. They might keep this up all day, depending on how much their general feels he wants to gamble."
"Fortunately this place doesn't have a gate, that's usually the first spot they'd focus on. And up on this rock I doubt very much that they're digging under the wall. All in all, as long as morale holds up and as long as Yrax himself doesn't swoop down on us, I'd say we're doing pretty well."
She pulls out her sippy flask and takes a quick drink, then offers it to Sakitu. "How are your spells holding out? Still got a few in the tank?"
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Sakitu accepts the flask from Quasit and holds it up to her nose for a sniff and immediately regrets it. She scrunches her nose. "Ew. I still can't believe that you guys drink stuff like that. I mean, and like it." But despite the smell, she takes a small sip. The liquid burns her tongue and throat as she swallows and then coughs. "Yeah. Still. Don't know why."
She scans the skies around them, seeing fairly easily through the weather. "I don't know. I don't see a lot more of these guys. I think that the battle's winding down."
She scans the skies around them, seeing fairly easily through the weather. "I don't know. I don't see a lot more of these guys. I think that the battle's winding down."
"More like the eye of the storm I think. Something big is coming, I can taste it!" Maka slammed a fiery fist into her palm, her excitement palpable to the others.
"We can do big, can't we Thumper?" Kalchine says, reaching up to scratch the frost ape behind a horn.
Chest Thumper had prowled around for a bit, hooting and grunting in agitation before deciding that there were no more immediate challenges. He then plopped down in a sitting position with his hands behind his head in a very human gesture of relaxation.
He accepts Kalchine's affection for a bit then flops down on his back and wiggles, apparently using the chainmail he's wearing to scratch an itch.
"We can do big, can't we Thumper?" Kalchine says, reaching up to scratch the frost ape behind a horn.
"Make sure to leave some for me!" Maka replied with a hearty laugh.
For the next hour, the battle falls into a lull. Here and there a few drakes or dragonkin draw close enough to the fortress to be engaged by the ballista, sending defenders rushing this way and that before they break off, usually before they can be injured too seriously. The snowstorm begins to abate as the sun climbs higher in the sky.
Eventually Commander Pharamol's voice again comes to you on an enchanted wind. "I don't trust this. Come back to the command council, we have..."
His voice is interrupted by shouting and roars. A flight of drakes soars towards one of the bastions, continuing in spite of casualties. As they reach the tower they break formation, revealing a handful of other beasts--three long, black-winged monsters and one copper-scaled dragonkin--behind them that swiftly surge forward towards the central keep. Defenders on its towers engage them... then mysteriously stop as they draw near. The four attackers angle towards the central courtyard in the middle of the keep.
Without waiting, Maka disappeared in a jet of flames as she engaged the enemy.
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"Saki, use that wand of Levitation to get you and Bulvi and Selena up. Fin and I will climb this rope. We don't have to time to run through the underground passages--Maka might get into trouble alone in there! Kalchine, I'm assuming you and Chest Grabber can get up and over on your own?"
Quasit skips in place and swings her arms around, loosening up her muscles after an hour of sitting around kibitzing and drinking. "This part'll be just like back home. I was the best roof-runner in Cassomir!" she says with a cheery smile. She waggles her hands to prepare them for gripping the rope.
Selena flies up and over the central courtyard, initially with a mind towards clearing the area around the top of rope, so the climbers don't get any nasty surprises.
"That looks...bad," Kalchine says.
He lays a hand on Chest Thumper and waves the other over the ice and snow and dirt and stone at his feet. The matter sucks into that hand and in a matter of moments fills the ape, causing him to grow and grow until he is twice his previous height, almost 20' tall.
Chest Thumper roars again, the sound even louder and echoing off the inner walls of the courtyard. He grabs up Kalchine, whose whole torso disappears inside his hand and starts to climb the ball.
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"Oh! The wand. That's a great idea." Sakitu takes the wand and quickly applies its magic to Bulvi. He uses handholds on the wall to propel himself up. She turns to use the wand on Selena only to spot her soaring off into the air. "Phhh. Of course she doesn't need help." Sakitu eyes Fin climbing the rope and marvels at the strength in his arms and shoulders. She shakes her head to keep from getting distracted then she turns the wand on herself. As she starts to float off the ground, she mimics Bulvi's actions and uses the wall to ascend.
Those who fly to the keep area see that the non-dragonkin creatures are black-scaled, many-legged dragon creatures.
These creatures are just finishing a circuit around the towers of the keep, leaving the defenders petrified in their wake.
The dracolisks fly to the top of some of the towers to make certain no more of the defenders are still active, while the dragonkin comes over and attacks Maka with their glaive.
Maka, in her typical nimble manner, evades the attack.
Dodging to the side of the Dragonkin's Glaive, Maka shot forward in a jet of flame and slammed her knee in the reptilian's snout.
Kalchine gets dumped over the parapet unceremoniously. He scrambles out of the way a moment before Chest Thumper grabs the same spot to heft his massive bulk up.
Two pairs of eyes scan the area, picking and prioritizing targets, one based on likely threat level, the other on how big and intimidating they are.
As Selena notes what is going on, "Gaze attacks! Don't lock eyes!" and she does a quick spell swap.
The dragon kin snarls in anger as Maka hits it, but notes the others climbing or rising above the wall. He opens up the distance a bit (provoking an attack of opportunity from Maka) and exhales a spray of acid, aimed to hit both Maka and Sakitu.
The dracolisks also note the approaching threats, and fly over to attack. One soars over to bring as many of the group as possible in range of its gaze as possible. A second one flies over to catch those out of range of the first. The last one flies into melee with Maka and tries to chomp her.
But it misses wildly.
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Looking over the situation, Fin hears Selena’s warning, thinking, Can’t hit what I can’t see…
"Fin, start shooting down those flying lizard-caterpiller things! I'll help Maka."
Resisting the gaze attack, Fin nods, murmuring, ”Aye, Q, will do,” as he draws a bead on the nearest dracolisk and unleashes a volley its way…
Wincing as he sees Sakitu splattered with acid, the Elf says, ”Saki, cast your attacks on the creature I shot!”
Bulvi in appreciation to Sakitu before dragging himself towards the draconic creature harassing Selena. Hearing the Witch's warning he calls out "Thanks for the heads up."
Closing his eyes Bulvi focuses and lets the blade guides towards the dragonic beast.