Li'an moves slowly over to the mirror, taking a defensive stance. She bends over to pick up the mirror, and the abrikandilu reacts in a flash, snarling angrily. It lunges at her, but Li'an neatly sidesteps it, picking up the mirror as she does so. She angles it towards the monsters, revealing to them their own ugly faces.
Ary is up.
Ary makes a frustrated sound, "Horgus, if either of them try to make a run for it, I want you to cut them down, okay? I know you can do it. They're both tied up, and I'll be nearby."
(Overprotective)
Ary moves to where the creatures can see her, and interposes herself between markus and them, leaving the rope and cultists behind; trying to free themselves at this point would end badly, anyway.
She stops when she can see the monsters through the open window. "Hey! Abrikandilu! I've got something shiny for you out here, you ugly monsters!" she says as she waves Radiance a work of art unto itself, and presents Faith, the masterfully crafted shield.
She'll then ready an action to strike with Radiance should they come for her, rather than targeting Li'an.
(Demons)
The abrikandilu glance over at Ary's sword and shield, intrigued - it successfully distracts the creature from its own reflection. It stares greedily at Radiance, and moves out of the room, through the open window to get to it. Anevia and Hrut seize the opportunity to swipe at it as it moves by, but it is too quick for them. It moves through the shattered glass without injury, and lunges at the golden sword. Ary reacts swiftly, swiping the creature as it approaches, drawing blood.
Stepping over Val, making sure not to hurt her more Hrut brings his Warhammer and Shield to bear on the foul creature. Hrut screams wildly as he attacks the demon with a ferocity his comrades have yet to see, channeling his peoples berserker blood into his attacks on the demon.
"Get off of her you filthy creature! RAWR!"
Hrut smashes his warhammer right into the demon's face, breaking its nose. Fresh blood runs down its face.
Markus pulls out Terendelev's scale, casting levitate upon himself. He floats up 20 feet, leaving a trail of clouds as he goes. "Under me, Ary," he says.
Horgus steps in between the two prisoners, holding Ary's sword warily. Hosilla leers at him unpleasantly, but the noble holds his ground.
Round 3
Valaria is up.
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Ehren is up.
Ehren steps forward and sweeps his club at the demon, hoping to distract it enough for Hrut to be able to hit it.
The other abrikandilu remains with Li'an. It snarls angrily, lunging forward at the mirror and shattering it quickly. The mirror shattered, it claws savagely at the elf woman, leaving a deep gash down her neck.
Anevia glances down at Valaria, then at Li'an's broken mirror. "Valaria is still looking really rough - does anyone have any potions from Seer Opoli left?"
She then quickly steps down and thrusts her shortsword at the abrikandilu, leaving a narrow score that slowly opens into a gory weal.
Li'an is up.
Li'an seems to stumble sideways in response to vicious hits dealt to her by the demon. As she moves, she shifts her weight, turning the momentum into a spin which she uses to whip Lleuad back around at the creature's head.
A soft whir of sound precedes a grisly thwack as Lleuad hits home across the creature's face.
Meanwhile, outside of the shop, the abrikandilu moves so that it is no longer standing in broken glass. It hesitates for a moment, its eyes following Ary's sword as she moves. Blood runs down from its broken snout onto the ground. Finally, it lunges at Ary, aiming for Radiance, but Ary keeps the sword out of its reach.
Ary touted Radiance in front of the rat-like beast's face, before quickly lashing out at it, and then backing slowly into the fog beneath Markus, waving it about to lure the poor creature into following her. Unfortunately, her attention seemed to be more on her downed companion, drawing her attention away from the demon, possibly fumbling an easy hit.
Hrut is up.
Hrut turns quickly from one demon to the next moving so quickly with his warhammer that it appears to almost phase out of reality, his arm becoming a shadow wielding his silver warhammer,
Markus stays in the air, keeping an eye on Hosilla and Uziel. He readies daze should they attempt to escape. He would come to Valaria's aid with a potion, but that would involve maneuvering around the angry demon below him - that seems like a bad idea.
Round 4
Valaria is up.
Valaria groans in pain, shakily looking up at the demon then dragging herself away to get out of the reach of its claws.
The demon lunges at Valaria, but misses wildly as its head is still spinning from Hrut's last blow. It crashes into a rack of clothes instead.
Ehren is up.
When the befuddled demon's attack misses, Ehren seizes his chance. He carefully takes a step back from the abrikandilu and reaches into his belt pouch, pulling out one of the potions Seer Opoli gave them. Keeping his eyes on the demon, he then kneels down beside Valaria, pulls out the vial's stopper, and holds it to her mouth.
The abrikandilu snarls, suddenly realizing that Hrut is making its face-chewing life rather difficult at the moment.
It lunges at Hrut's face, though it lacks the fervor it had before, and so the hulking man skips lightly backwards, his face calm and collected. Frustrated, the demon rips into Hrut with its fearsome claws.
Anevia decides to swipe at the abrikandilu while it is distracted by Hrut. Its movements are slow and sluggish with its wounds, and she manages to hack deeply into its midsection. She frowns, and glances at Li'an. "Finish him off!" She moves a little to the side to open up a flank for Li'an.
Li'an is up.
Li'an responds to Anevia's quick shift to the left by sidestepping as well, catching the creature off-guard. Stepping forward, she places both her hands on Lleuad's hilt and drives the short sword into the Abrikandilu's back, attempting to sever its spine.
The demon spins around to face Anevia when she circles around it, giving Li'an the opportunity to thrust her blade into the demon's back, felling it to the ground.
Meanwhile, the other abrikandilu keeps its efforts focused on Radiance, but Ary is too quick for the disoriented creature, who is having serious problems finding Ary in Markus' fog.
Ary is up.
Ary, no longer distracted by a downed-and-possibly endangered Valaria redoubles her efforts on the Abrikandilu before her.
(DEMONS, Bless)
(DEMONS)
The sword dances slightly in her hand as she strikes out, but still she manages to swing for a more vulnerable spot, staying in Markus's fog cloud, and using it to her advantage. "Thanks Markus!" she calls up to him.
Then, thinking twice, she slips out of the shroud of fog... no risk, no reward. If she moves a little, she can aid her fellows more easily in bringing down the beast.
Ary's onslaught leaves the abrikandilu shrieking and injured.
Hrut is up.
Enduring strike, move to possible flank, pugilist stance
Hrut moves out the door, channeling the divine power of Al'asadriel as he pummels the demon before him with wild abandon. Nearby, Valaria's wounds continue to miraculously heal. The two shopkeepers peer out from the corner with astonishment.
Markus is up.
Markus continues to hover above the demon and the melee - he has no wish to descend down into the threatening range of the demon, and he's seen that Valaria is mostly okay now.
He continues to keep an eye on the prisoner-cultists, readying a daze just in case any of them attempt an escape.
Horgus seems antsy. His eyes dart between the two cultists, and Ary's longsword trembles in his hands, but he stays his ground.
Round 5
Valaria is up.
Val looks up at Ehren and smiles. "Thank you," she says as sheathes one of her blades and climbs to her feet.
Valaria stands up from prone.
Ehren is up.
Ehren returns Valaria's smile with a brief grin before stepping back out the door, where the other demon is more or less surrounded. Once more he swings at the creature with his club, more intent on giving Hrut an opening than on actually hitting it.
Anevia glances out the door and notices the two men are blocking the way - she rolls her eyes. She glances back at Li'an.
"I'll take top if you take bottom? Scout tip #34: avoid the teeth!" She grins, though she's obviously bracing herself before dashing out there - these things are faster than the dim-witted dretches.
She sidles past Ehren but thanks to her injury is just a hair too slow - thankfully, Hrut lurches forward and rebuffs the monster with his steel shield, allowing Anevia safe passage.
"Oh man! Thanks for that," Anevia says, breathlessly, before sending her own weapon soaring into the demon's broken snout.
Li'an is up.
Li'an hops up on the desk and steps lightly onto the window frame in a crouch, leaping from it and landing in a short tumble 5' later. Coming up from the roll she turns around and attacks the remaining demon, taking advantage of Anevia's positioning to strike a deadly blow.
Li'an tumbles through the window and leaps across the broken glass. Unfortunately, the effort costs her accuracy, and the demon twists away from her swing at the last moment.
The demon snarls and turns to Hrut, who manages to fend off the worst of its blows, his shield red with the blood from the creature's snout but the ugly demon manages to flay off a neat slice of flesh with one of its claws.
Ary is up.
(DEMONS, Bless, Flank)
(DEMONS, Bless, Flank)
(DEMONS)
Ary grimaces as she sees Li'an's minor fumble, overshooting. Radiance sways above the demon-rat, as its eyes follow it greedily... until it focuses its attention on the greater danger, Hrut. She brings down a heavy, punishing blow from above, aiming for the thing's eyes and throat, she takes advantage of its distraction and reaction, to plunge the blade deep into its vitals.
Among the whirlwind of carnage, Radiance delivers the cool kiss of death as Ary plunges the sword deep into the rat-demon's stomach. The demon falls unconscious and swiftly bleeds to death.
Combat ends.
"Is everyone alright?" she asks, looking over her allies, and past them to the people inside, before focusing her attention back on the prisoners and Horgus; everyone was up and moving... and there wasn't much she could do otherwise, aside from the potion in her pouch.
She moved to reclaim the rope, wiping Radiance clean on her torn and tattered cloak as she did. She gave Horgus a smile, as she took the rope back up.
Val groans again and sheathes her other blade before digging around in her belt pouch and finding another potion. She downs it in one swift gulp.
"I've been better, but I'll live." She hisses in pain as the potion seals several of the ragged claw marks, though more remain.
The two common people get up from behind the giant dried up vat of dye and cautiously move out to look at the heroes. The woman stares up at Markus, who is flying up above even the roofs of the buildings on a trail of clouds, open mouthed.
The man stares at Ary, who is wearing a tabard of the Mendevian Crusades. "Are you crusaders?" he asks, apprehensively. "Thank you so much for your help. My name is Belthis Loumis, and this is my wife, Nira."
"Perhaps it is a blessing they could be so easily distracted," Ehren remarks, lowering his club with a sigh. Just from a glance, it was quite clear that he was all right. Unscathed, again. He glances over at Valaria with a frown, walking back into the store. "...but not so much when you are the one doing the distracting. Here."
The druid's hand glows with positive energy once more as he taps the tiefling on the shoulder.
Valaria smiles at Ehren again. "Thanks. That's two I owe you for saving my a$$." She stretches experimentally, seeing how many wounds she still has remaining and finding the pain significantly dulled.
She turns to the two civilians. "Some of us are crusaders, the rest are friends of the crusades. Are either of you injured?"
Ary leads the prisoners back to the group, keeping them close, as she watches the two people from the shop. She guides her shield arm to Avi's hand, "Moving forward to join the group again." she suggests.
"Some of us are also most assuredly -not- crusaders." she says, as she moves her head to indicate the two that are tied up. "You only noticed two demons, right, Rocky?" she doublechecked, as she looked about.
Aravashnial nods, following Ary. Horgus tags along behind.
Belthis stares at Valaria, then chuckles grimly. "Robbed by crusaders. Saved by demon-spawn. The whole world has gone to hell."
Nira grabs Belthis' hand and squeezes it. "Belthis. Don't be rude. That woman almost died for us." She shakes her head at Valaria. "We're fine... but... we're out of food. And water. Th-there is nothing left."
Belthis stares blankly at nothing in particular. "T-the crusaders. They said Nerosyan was attacked too, and that it's been completely destroyed by demons! Where can we go? Numeria?"
Nira shakes her head. "Cross the Lake of Mists and Veils into Brevoy, perhaps. Get as far away from here as we can."
Li'an looks relieved that the demons have been slain. "Good job distracting one of them Ary, I think we'd have been in serious trouble if you hadn't bought us time to finish off the first one," Li'an says as she sheathes Lleuad.
"We're glad we arrived in time Belthis, Nira. I'm Li'an," she says to them. "We're headed to Blackwing and then to seek shelter. You should come along with us for now, as I doubt it will be safe to remain here. We have some food and supplies that we can share as well."
"It wasn't a big deal." she offered to Li'an, before returning her attention to the couple. "They weren't Crusaders. Crusaders wouldn't take your money. Crusaders wouldn't take your food or water. They were just looters wearing the uniform. A little worse than common thugs." she shakes her head. "If you've got anything from your shop to drink out of, water isn't an issue." she suggests, unconsciously offering up Ehren's services without a second thought, then her smile fades for a moment, to return shortly after. 'Horgus had better be right about his place being safe... if not, we'll starve before the demons get us.' She sheathes her sword so she can get into her backpack... and digs out the last package of trail rations, holding it out, while she holds her position. "It isn't much... but it's the best I have."
Val momentarily glares at the words demon-spawn, but doesn't reply for a few moments. "I seriously doubt Nerosyan has fallen this quickly. The crusaders are strongest there and they'd make the demons pay dearly for every step they took. And if it somehow has, I doubt there's anywhere safe, no matter how far you run. For now, all we can do is try our best to keep you safe until we can find somewhere in the city to hole up, if you'll let us."
Belthis blinks. "Blackwing? The library? Is it safe there?"
Nira gratefully accepts Ary's food. "Anywhere is better than here." For a moment, Belthis looks ready to argue, but he decides better against arguing with his wife.
Nira looks from face to face. "We don't have anything to repay you with..." She thinks for a moment. "Your... clothes. They're filthy," she tuts. Indeed, the heroes have had a rough couple of days - their clothes are filthy, tattered, and stained with blood, both their own and that of their enemies.
"A lot of our stock was destroyed by those... things," she looks at the rat-demons with distaste. "But once our clothes were the best in Mendev. Please.. if there's something you'd like, go ahead and take it. I'm sure you'd like to wear something fresh under your armor."
Belthis' shoulders sag. "I'd rather see them worn than stolen by looters."
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Taking off his helmet to wipe the blood and demon grime from his face, Hrut walks over to the others, moving past them to Val, grabbing her shoulders and making sure she is intact enough,
"After all of that below the earth stuff you run headlong into a house full of demons?! How about you let me go in first from now on so I can attempt to keep their attention before you barge in all fragile and half cocked or I will personally be spanking that butt you are so proud of!"