Seeing the enemy falls between him and Draeger gives Esdras no joy, even if he can't deny that a small part of him missed the adrenaline of a combat. Despite his age, his movements were still precise, even if he wasn't completely sure if this was the result of his good shape and muscle memory or the influence of the Sword.
Shaking these darker thoughts, Esdras quickly summoned Jaidev from his mind. "Jaidev, I have use of your speed." As the spirit manifested and was forced to overlap Esdras's as an umbra, Esdras readied himself for Jaidev's normal complaints... which never occurred. The sight of the bloodied enemy in from of them clearly appeased him.
"Look aaalll this blood..." Jaidev praised, laughed maniacally, making his head almost fall back because of the gap of his almost-beheading. "Finally, I'm here for the fun!"
Esdras ignored him and instead moved south, intending to cut the other enemy of his escape.
Draegar snatched the dagger out of the leg of the man who was falling limply from his grasp and slashed at his friend.
Esdras calls upon the spirit of Jaidev to augment his movement. The spirit revels in the bloodshed, eagerly participating in the battle and pushing Esdras's legs forward as he sprints through the bowels of the ship to cut off escape routes.
Draegar smoothly grasps the dagger from the man he felled, three fingers pinching the blade and flipping it up into the air. He catches it by the hilt, then turns and viciously plunges it into the shoulder of the man behind him, repaying him in triple for the wound his friend gave to the half-skive.
The second man snarls in pain at the deep wound, annoyance swiftly drying up as it is replaced with fear. As Esdras runs around the catwalk, no doubt to get behind him, he breaks and makes a run for it, nimbly staying out of Draegar's reach.
Draegar took a step after the fleeing enemy and whipped two missiles after him one after the other.
Noticing the enemy fleeing, Esdras followed after him, probably too fast for him to have a real chance of escaping. When he reached the man, he decided that the need of information was far more important than another corpse. While swinging his sword, he flicked his wrist mid air, trying to hit with the flat side of his sword.
Draegar dragged the fallen man at his feet over to the other one and pulled on the gass mask, adjusting it to fit. "Grab his mask," he said as he started patting the men down.
Draegar watches the man flee for a moment, then grabs two of his wicked throwing weapons and steps forward. Whoosh! Whoosh! The first goes wide, slamming loudly into the safety railing and leaving a sizable dent before clattering onto the walkway. But the second sticks into his lower back, right under the ribs. Esdras hears the man gasp softly before collapsing.
With the threat taken care of, Esdras and Draegar have a moment to catch their breath and assess the situation. Draegar bends over to drag the first man, and realizes that through the acrid steam the smell of burning flesh is filling his nostrils. Once the first man fell, the hot grate cooked him to death. With a grimace he pulls, significant chunks of the man's flesh sticking to the hot grate as Draegar peels the body up and drags it over.
Draegar and Esdras put on the masks of the fallen men and instantly feel relief. Although the heat is still brutal, the masks are filtering the air and making it much easier on their lungs.
Draegar does a quick search of their bodies, turning up a small collection of daggers and some coin, as well as some engineer tools. He also notices they're wearing matching gold rings, both inscribed with the same insignia. It looks like two daggers crossed over a bag.
The un-cooked one might have information. Letting him die seemed counter-productive.
Draegar didn't know much about medicine, but he'd been patched up enough times to know the basics. The first thing to do was get him off the hot grating.
He picked the man up, but with his arms full he couldn't do much about the bloodflow.
"Guess I should have used something less lethal," he muttered.
After putting the mask, Esdras recognizes the general meaning of the rings but pays no attention to it at the moment, knowing there were more urgent matters to attend. Pointing to the tools, Esdras talks while grabbing the still alive enemy and putting him over his shoulder. "No time worry about it now... I'll take him out of this hell and try to keep him alive... meanwhile, do your best to fix whatever is going on here. I'm counting on your expertise."
Draegar nodded. He pocketed the rings and headed deeper into the bowels of the ship.
Esdras throws the still-breathing man over his shoulder, using his unnatural speed to quickly move back to the door they originally came in. He puts the man down next to the stairs, trying to stem the flow of blood. At first it just seems to be getting worse, but Esdras manages to tie off a strip of the man's shirt around his torso and stops the bleeding. Although he doesn't seem like he's going to be waking up anytime soon, and the fumes and heat aren't going to be good for him. How long will he last in the area?
Draegar takes the rings, heading further in.
Esdras was torn between dropping leaving the man and rushing back to help Draegar or carry him to a more healthful location. In the end, he decided for the second option, since he wouldn't do any good by helping Draegar and the man showed pretty capable to defending himself.
With the man stable, Esdras once more put the man over his shoulder and pressed forward, intending to leave the heat of the bowels... with any luck, he would find the help that the knight was supposed to get.
Finally he reaches the back of the ship, where he sees a single figure with their back turned, tinkering with the controls of the ship. They don't appear to have noticed you.
Once spotting the pair, he stopped, waiting and watching to see what they were doing.
Finally out of the scorching heat of the bowels, Esdras drops the wounded man on the floor and against the wall before rushing back to help Draeger. Once back into the bowels, he tries his best to walk as quietly as he can.
Although the heat is still brutal, having clear lungs has made the ordeal far easier as both Draegar and Esdras weather the conditions as best as can be expected.
After about six minutes of waiting, Draegar hears Esdras coming towards him. Rather easily. Obviously stealth is not his strong suit. Still, it does not appear the individual working on the ship has noticed them as he continues to tinker with the mechanisms of the ship.
Checking diagnostics for minutes on end while the air was boiling didn't seem like the sort of thing a competent engineer would do. Given that they'd already been attacked once and knew some kind of sabotage was happening, Draegar decided the time for subtlety was over. He had backup now.
He pulled a throwing iron free of it's sheath and let it fly toward the engineer's back.
Despite not liking the idea of jumping someone that did not threatened him yet, Esdras decided to trust in Draegar's judgement, at least for now. As Draegar threw his weapon, Esdras drew readied himself for another combat, concentrating.
"Gideon... I'll need your strength." With that thought, Gideon appeared much like Jaidev before, lending his strength and technique to Esdras.
With backup now, Draegar decides the time for waiting is over. He steps out from cover and whips a spiked iron at the man 'working' on the ship. It impales his left leg, causing him to gasp in pain and almost drop to a knee as he whips around.
As the weapon flies Esdras begins to call upon a spirit for aid...
Twang! A bow string hums, and Esdras looks up to see a dart of movement. If he had been ready, perhaps he could have jerked out of the way. But as is the vicious little barb lands just above his collarbone, burrowing deep into his neck. What appears to be a small wound was aimed with deadly precision and causes a staggering amount of pain.
From behind the dart comes a larger shadow, landing with a loud crash! on the metal walkway. The cloaked shape lunges upward and Esdras sees the face that Topaz described to him; lean, high cheekbones, faint scar under the left eye. But what she didn't describe was the hungry look in his eyes. Forg is here, and he's out for blood.
Then Esdras feels the blade puncture his side. It slips between his ribs, placed with precision to get as deep as possible, almost like the one wielding the blade is a healer who knows the anatomy of the human body. The blade leaves his body as quickly as it entered, Forg giving a sick laugh as he readies the punching dagger for another attack. "Shouldn't of come down here, now you'll have to die!"
Caught by surprise, Esdras lost his focus and instead attacked in blind rage. "Mistakes were made... fate will decide who..."
"Get clear," Draegar said grimly.
"Get clear," Draegar said grimly.
Seeing that Edras had nowhere to go, Draegar lowered his shoulder and rushed into the fray.
Esdras breathes heavily from the deep wounds in his neck and abdomen, but remains upright and turns with a vicious sideswipe. For a flash he feels a thought from Jaidev...He expects you to compensate for your wounds, don't. Swing through the pain or you will get worse. Indeed his advice is sound as Esdras swings, painfully pulling on his open wounds and catching Forg across the chest. His eyes widen in shock and anger, and although his blood sprays into the railing and sizzles against the hot metal, he seems plenty able to still fight.
Draegar grabs Esdras's shoulder, pulling the old veteran back while simultaneously using him to launch himself forward towards Forg. The man's eyes narrow and he raises his dagger to strike...then twists away at the last moment. Draegar stumbles for a moment as he tries to catch his balance since he thought he was about to crash into the man, but before he can Forg plunges his dagger into the rear of the half-skive's thigh. Although the blow was well-aimed it lacked power and Forg snarls as he backs away from Draegar. "Kill the old man!" He shouts at his accomplice. The other man snarls and rips the throwing weapon from his flesh, closing the gap on Esdras and bringing out a dagger. With an enemy on each side Esdras has little hope against the underhanded smugglers as another blade lays open the flesh on the back of his right arm, but this one is not nearly as deep or painful as the ones he received from Forg. Still, another area where he is losing blood...how much longer can he keep this up?
Esdras grits his teeth as he is attacked from the back. His first impulse is to retaliate as quick as possible, but instead he holds his position... for even if he is flanked, Forg was as well.
Once the moment was right, Esdras swings his greatsword in a wide arc, striking not Forg but his accomplice instead.
Draegar snaped a hand down at Forg's dagger.
Esdras holds his position, knowing his blade threatens Forg and makes him have to keep his eyes in both directions. Draegar doesn't hesitate to use the opening, closing the gap and with a fist knocking Forg's dagger spinning from his hands. However between the shooting pain in his thigh and Esdras's broad-shouldered form blocking his view, the blade clatters past Forg's accomplice harmlessly.
Esdras turns to viciously cut at the man behind him and once against hears Jaidev. Didn't expect the dagger, swing high, he's off bala- But the connection shatters as the pain in his neck spikes white-hot, causing his arm to tremble and allowing Forg's accomplice to just barely duck the blow aimed at his neck.
Forg no longer looks mirthful, eyes trained hard on Draegar with a mix of anger and caution. "I said kill the old f+~~er!" He shouts at his accomplice as he draws a backup dagger at his waist. The man obliges, blade darting forward...
Esdras holds his position, knowing his blade threatens Forg and makes him have to keep his eyes in both directions. Draegar doesn't hesitate to use the opening, closing the gap and with a fist knocking Forg's dagger spinning from his hands. However between the shooting pain in his thigh and Esdras's broad-shouldered form blocking his view, the blade clatters past Forg's accomplice harmlessly.
Esdras turns to viciously cut at the man behind him and once against hears Jaidev. Didn't expect the dagger, swing high, he's off bala- But the connection shatters as the pain in his neck spikes white-hot, causing his arm to tremble and allowing Forg's accomplice to just barely duck the blow aimed at his neck. Esdras steps away from Forg, putting the metal railing between them so he can keep his focus in one direction.
Forg no longer looks mirthful, eyes trained hard on Draegar with a mix of anger and caution. "I said kill the old f@!!er!" He shouts at his accomplice as he draws a backup dagger at his waist. The man obliges, himself and Forg following Esdras's footwork to maintain the pressure on the veteran. The accomplice darts quickly, dagger swinging low at his leg. Forward, not back. You will catch his hand. Gideon urges Esdras to lean into the attack, which may have been a vital mistake against a longer blade, but against the short dagger it causes the man's fist to harmlessly thump against his knee.
Forg uses the shifting positions to get some space from Draegar, who he clearly has no interest being next to. He grabs a vial from his belt, smashing it into the ground between them. Almost instantly the metal grating dissolves, like it was acid eating through paper. The splash catches both Forg and Draegar, burning slightly, but the true intent of the action is clear; there is no way that Draegar can stand in the location just next to Forg.
Draegar couldn't help but smile. It the blink of an eye two heavy throwing irons whipped out at Forg.
Battered and bloodied, Esdras is almost in the brink of colapse, like many times before during the war. Flanked once more, Esdras attacks the accomplice with all his strength before sidestepping northwest to cut Forg of his escape.
Draegar smiles at Forg's mistaken belief that the half-skive is only dangerous in melee. Two throwing irons fly out. The first one flies just past Forg's neck, as Draegar tried to be conservative with his aim to keep himself from hitting Esdras. But the other rips through the front of Forg's chest, catching enough of him to cause a long wound before spinning out on the ground and clattering loudly into the bowels of the ship. Forg hisses at the wound but doesn't seem like he's going down from it.
Esdras is finally regaining his composure. The ambush was finished, this was an honest fight, even if he started it out heavily injured. He grits his teeth through the pain, swinging his blade in a long cross-cut that hits home. Blood flies up in an arc, painting the sides of one of the machines and boiling instantly. The man is cut open from left hip to right shoulder, wound so deep that his ribs are shattered and his pulverized organs slopping out onto the ground. The man falls to his knees, dead before he hits the ground. The wound yawns open, his top half falling backwards and hitting the walkway, as if some gruesome display of the devastation of Esdras's blow.
"F*+~, you useless pile of shit!" Forg screams at the already-dead man. He turns as Esdras steps behind him, breathing heavily but blocking his path. He screams, slashing wildly in front of him. His attacks aren't as precise or deadly as before, and Esdras manages to use his forearms to block the assault, but even then another deep cut is made. As the wound on his arm mounts with the others, his vision starts fading. The blood loss is too much. He collapses. Forg takes the opening and starts running away, going further to the rear of the ship where Draegar knows there is a ladder leading to the upper levels.
Draegar sees Forg start running, briefly losing sight as the machinery blocks his view. The hole would be easy enough to jump over, and he hasn't gotten very far yet. But the stench of burning carrion is still strong in his mind as he sees Esdras's body on the ground, just beginning to steam.
Draegar hopped the hole in the catwalk and knelt. He pulled Esdras' dagger from his belt and tossed it at the fleeing Forg.
Draegar does a standing jump over the small gap, then takes three large strides forward and reaches for Esdras's dagger, grabbing it and whipping his body around in one smooth motion. The blade flies through the air and slices clean through Forg's left ear, causing him to yelp and jerk to his right. He staggers and nearly falls, but seems to be made of tougher stuff than his henchmen and continues his retreat, footsteps echoing off the walls as he makes his escape.
As Draegar watches Forg flee, the sizzling of flesh on hot metal reaches his ears. He can no longer smell the sickening order due to his mask, but Esdras is quickly headed towards a grisly death.
Draegar hoisted Esdras up onto his shoulder and off the metal, then flicked his wrist. One of his emergency potions snapped into his hand from a hidden mechanical sheath. He popped the top with his thumb and poured it into Esdras' mouth.
Draegar gets Esdras off the ground, quickly pouring a potion down his throat. After a few moments his wounds close very slightly and his eyes flicker open.
Esdras reaches for his sword immediately and gets to his feet, which cause him some dizziness. Using his greatsword for support, he looks around for Forg. "Has he escaped?"
"He thinks he did. This way," Draegar said, following the trail of red footprints and the smell of blood cooking on the hot grating.
As he moved he handed Esdras another potion.
Draegar begins tracking Forg, not a particularly difficult job due to the narrows walkways, drops of blood, and the fact he only has about a ten second head start. But he hardly makes it twenty feet before he and Esdras hear a series of noises from up ahead.
The sound of metal hinges creaking, bearing a lot of weight.
A surprised cry from a voice that sounds like Cass.
The sound of arcane words invoking a spell.
A surprised cry from a voice that sounds like Forg.
CRASH!
Hurrying ahead to the noises, Draegar and Esdras come around the corner. They see a ladder leading about twenty feet up to the rest of the ship which ends in a hatch, now open. Cass stands in the opening of the hatch, eyes wide open from an adrenaline rush. His hand is still held out from casting a spell, and the top section of the ladder is covered in an oily black grease. Forg lies at the bottom of the ladder, unmoving and with a broken leg on top of his other injuries. Cass looks up to Draegar and Cass, trying to wrap his head around what just happened. "Uhh, that was Forg right? I sure hope so..." He says as he grimaces at the man's broken leg.
"Nice work!" Draegar called up. He hauled Forg up to keep him from burning to death on the floor, and quickly hauled him up the ladder and stuffed him through the trapdoor with Cas' help. "I'm not a medic. I'm betting there's going to be questions, so it would be nice if he didn't bleed out."
He headed back down. "Cass, I'm probably going to need a hand fixing whatever Forg did down here."
Then he tapped his chest where his automaton's legs came together like backpack straps. Once again it unfolded to the floor. It's pincer-like claws grabbed the grating to keep from slipping between the gaps.
"Retrieval. Damage Industries projectiles. Three," he said while he started working on the ship's console. The automaton crawled beneath the catwalk and down in the underbelly where it's tracking systems had last seen the projectiles go.
Draegar picks Forg up off the ground and moves to the ladder, but as soon as he touches it he recoils when he realizes the ladder is metal. Looking at Forg he doesn't appear to be wearing gloves, and he also doesn't have any burn marks on him.
"Huh." Draegar said. "Neat trick." Then dropped Forg unceremoniously back to the heated metal floor.
That was the only response the big Skive gave regarding whatever he'd just noticed.