| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Spivey holds up her hand. "Just one more thing. I can offer you free healing should you come back here, and the graveyard is a place that I can keep safe for you at all hours. I don't need to sleep, after all." She pauses. "Well, I need to rest, if I'm to get my spells back, but not sleep. So if you want, this place is safe to sleep."
With that said, the heroes continue on their way.
After almost a minute, she speaks again. "She says it depends on how badly it's desecrated. Cleaning up a stone stele and wiping off graffiti is one thing, but something under the effects of a [i]desecrate spell is quite another..."[/i] The harpy pauses. "Supposedly, she could deal with the latter given enough time."
Riftun snaps out of it and bows deeply to the azata as the group make to depart. "Thank you Spivey! You're too kind to offer us such aid. W-We'll likely take you up on that offer and endeavor to find your sacred artifact while we're in the keep! Take care!"
After the group has walked away a spell the bard mentions to the others, "Okay so ummm... Koya says that she can probably undo any kind of desecration on the shrine given enough time but Zaiobe has mentioned that the tainted shrine is now sacred to the corbies a-and their priestess is likely to be found there so... we'd definitely have to clear the way."
Yuto thanks Spivey alongside Riftun for the healing and resting offer.
The Tian is incredibly surprised when the Ulfen talks like if he has just talked with Koya, he looks around for a few seconds without finding her "Y-you mean she will probably say... i-isn't it?"
Whatever it is, once the group starts to go up the road to the fortress, Yuto makes it into the eastern mass of trees, and proceeds as they had discussed, trying to cover his advance with stealth.
And climbing up with the help of his magical ring once they reach the wall. If he makes it up, he tries to set the rope for others to climb up too.
Riftun looks over at Yuto and rubs the back of his head letting out a nervous giggle. "O-Oh ummm... no I mean Zaiobe just spoke with Koya for me and asked her back at the caravan. Z-Zaiobe granted me this this really cool ability to speak with her telepathically. From literally anywhere on this plane of existence so long as she allows it."
The bard sighs wistfully and looks up at the sky and hums. "She's pretty amazing. L-Like the rest of you! You can all do such incredible things."
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"Wow, that's pretty neat! So you can talk to Zaiobe whenever you like, wherever she is?" She nods at Riftun. "You are pretty amazing, too, if she granted this bond to you, and only you."
Torra grins, the first sign of levity the dwarf has shown since they've first returned from Brinewall. Her lighter mood fades quickly though, as they are faced with scaling the castle wall.
The party makes its way along the castle's forested hill, circling around to its flank. Yuto is the first to emerge, and easily makes the climb up to the wall. Before he lowers the rope down, he checks what he can see around the area - there aren't any foes that he can see, at any rate.
Though Torra has no trouble making her way up the rope, Riftun slips and scrambles, and can't quite make it there on his first try. Ultimately, the party manages to get up without falling off the wall, and they are left with the choice of where to head first.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Teruko bows to Spivey before they leave. "Thank you for your offer of healing and a safe place to rest. We will be certain to inform you once we've found the shrine."
Once they walk away, her head snaps towards Riftun as he informs them of his new connection to Zaiobe. "Isn't that the same as the bond she had with Kikonu?" There's a definite note of alarm in her voice. Amaya had said Riftun didn't seem enchanted, and Zaiobe hadn't had any control over Kikonu, but it's still concerning. "Does it do anything else? Could you block her if you needed to?" She calms herself down with a visible effort.
"Riftun, I know you want to trust Zaiobe. But you've grown very close to her very quickly, and I worry she's manipulating you." She holds up a hand to stall any protests. "I acknowledge there's no conclusive evidence of that, and it's entirely possible I'm being paranoid. Just...be careful. Please?"
Teruko is relieved to see no enemies lurking on the walls. "At least if they're guarding anywhere, they don't have enough numbers to cover the whole fortress. That's a good sign." Looking around, she points to the west. "We never did see what was across that bridge. Shall we start there?"
"E-Exactlty Torra, at least that's what Zaiobe tells me. I imagine it may come quite in handy as we explore the keep." He blushes heavily when Torra implies that Zaiobe granting him this connection makes him amazing as well. "Oh! Ummm well, I don't really know about all that! Hehe, I j-hust talk a lot and tell stories you all are the ones slaying monsters a-and doing the actual heroics." The young man is trying to wave his arms in front of him as if warding off the undue compliment when Teruko's interjection catches him off guard.
He practically jumps out of his skin when the woman's head snaps in his direction and Riftun immediately begins to feel the anxiety welling up in his chest as she begins questioning him. "I-I believe so yes... Z-Zaiobe s-said th-that ummm, that Kikonu's death allowed her t-to reforge the connection, though, I believe she c-can sever it whenever she wants."
"I, ummm, I d-don't believe it does anything else. N-Not that I h-have noticed anyways. I-I don't know if I can b-block her... I've never tried but b-best I can tell she doesn't have any influence on my actions."
Riftun's head hangs low in shame as he acknowledges his own naivety in the situation and takes his chastisement appropriately. "I... I understand your concerns Teruko." he admits, his words drained of color. "I wouldn't say we've gotten all that close... she's still quite guarded around me, sometimes I feel like I'm more of an annoying pest to her than a friend, and, honestly, it feels like she could just fly away at any moment and I have no idea what to do about that."
The bard stares at his feet as they continue to trudge listlessly forward. "But, Sarenrea would urge us to give people room to grow and... well... let's just say I have a vested interest in the comcept of someone who's done wrong turning their life around." He smiles sadly and looks forward with determination. "Everyone has a little ember of good in their somewhere they just need some kindling."
__________
Riftun is embarrassed at his initial failure to climb the walls but is glad for his compaions help in getting him to where they needed to go. Looking around he puzzles. "I-It is a little strange that we haven't seen any resistance given our actions yesterday... We should keep a close eye out for traps, ambushes, a-and especially that Phantom corbie from yesterday... she's sure to still be skulking around."
With that Riftun reaches into his pouch, pulls out a single coffee bean and holds it aloft. Muttering some arcane words the bean turns from dark brown to ebony at which point the bard pops it in his mouth with a crunch. His eyes immediately widen and begin darting about rapidly as the young man begins to jitter and shake a bit.
"A-Alright, I'm good to go. The bridge seems as good a place as any to start though I would like to try and find Kelda as quickly as possible. The gods only know what she's bwing subjected to in there."
"Yo-you can talk to Zaiobe at a distance?" Yuto opens his mouth in awe. Yet when Teruko speaks, he looks back concerned at the Ulfen. Riftun did not see controlled by an external force, but it never hurt to have an eye, or two, on him.
"O-ok, let's cross the bridge and see what is pa-past those doors" Yuto readies his shield and his katana, and carefully starts walking through the bridge, expecting to see another ogrekin falling from nowhere at them.
If they reach the double doors, he waits for the group to inspect them "Pe-perhaps Riftun is right and they set traps..." and afterwards, he opens them to see what is behind.
Andochtuir simply nods when the younger Kaijitsu declares her intent to keep her father's spirit to herself. Wouldn't he, if faced with a similar situation, rather than face definitive loss?
Though the way she described it as 'haunting' earlier did seem a bit at odds with that statement...
Well, it wasn't his decision at any rate.
Listening to Riftun and his bond with Zaiobe filled him with a sense of wonder. Speaking across the entire world? Just like that? This harpy had to possess extremely powerful magic, or telepathy, or at least a bond to a strong source of magic or being to accomplish such a feat. "Did Zaiobe have some sort of power over Kikonu, Riftun? Otherwise, I'm inclined to think her presence is a great tactical boon. Even if only just to scout from the air, her your ability to have her talk to anyone in the camp from great distance, and receive a response so quickly... that is amazing as well. If we ever run into trouble, have to warn anyone, or be informed of something urgent happening there, she could solve that for us."
Walking after Yuto and eyes peeked for any danger, he then frowns. "Yet, there is something to be said for Teruko's warning. Growing overly reliant on such a gift makes one vulnerable to betrayal, for one. We should probably take some caution not to overly rely on her."
After saying his piece, he continues watching for any hidden threats.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Brinewall Castle is eerily quiet as the heroes go around the ramparts to the doors across the bridge. Though neither Yuto nor Andochtuir see any traps, the door is, unfortunately quite firmly locked. Fortunately, Yuto still has the key they found in the lighthouse, and after trying it, he finds that it fits the lock well. With a twist (that causes the key to groan softly), he unlocks the door.
After checking with his companions, he opens the door. Within, dozens of paintings of a four-winged humanoid with a bird's head cover the walls of the room, seemingly using blood rather than more common pigments. Old pews sit in a line facing the eastern wall, where a hideously defaced statue of a winged woman stands.
Standing near the statue is another dire corby, this one wearing robes and with a sword on one hip. She looks at the heroes, seeming startled for a moment. She shrieks something in her native tongue.
Exchanging a brief glance with Riftun, Andochtuir asks: "Seems we've lost the surprise! Anything I should know about their kind?" before rushing forward to meet the figure in battle!
He strides into the room and brings his Fauchard to bear...
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Riftun shakes his head at Andochtuir, "Z-Zaiobe's only power over Kikonu seemed to be to really, violently p-.... a-anger him. Other than that I'd say that, given how they fought each other to the death... It's unlikely she had any control over the man."
-------------------------
The young bard can't help but gasp loudly as the doors open up, not because of the horrific works of art, or even the deadly foe stood before them, rather it was the sight of the shrine to his patron, a statue of the Great Dreamer herself... profaned in such a way! The sight shook him to his core and filled his heart with righteous indignation as his eyes narrowed upon the dire corby before them.
He glances over at Andochtuir and speaks hastily, "I-I'm not as familiar with these beasts as I should be I-I'm sorry but they do have a tendency to keep fighting long past the point others would have died! Good luck!"
"And so, enraged by the sight of the sacrilege visited upon the countenance of Lady Luck, the heroes descended upon the black-hearted Priestess heedless of her vile magics!" Riftun begins in his story-teller voice, suddenly calm and cool-headed as though retreating within his own tale for comfort from the grim reality.
"Torra now! Before she has a chance to react!"
After getting Riftun's advice, Andochtuir moves into the desecrated shrine, lashing out at the unprepared dire corby and cutting her deep across the chest. She yelps. "Unbelievers! You'll pay in sight of Pazuzu!"
The young bard begins distracting his comrades from any malevolent illusions that the priestess might cast, while offering Torra insight into how to strike the bird-woman down.
Unfortunately, the avian priestess is too quick for the dwarf kineticist, drawing her blade and stepping sideways out of Andochtuir's reach. With a growl, she pulls out a silver symbol, and utters a few words. A burst of horrific sound erupts from Yuto, screaming in the Andochtuir, Torra, and Yuto's ears. Yuto feels the sound resounding in his skull, and he drops his sword to the ground, the ringing in his ears overwhelming his senses for a moment.
The loud ringing is unmistakable, even from this far away. "Sound burst! She's most likely a cleric of Pazuzu, and a skilled one at that." Teruko steps forward, quickly chanting her own spell. A wave of divine energy encompasses the group.
"If you corner her she won't be able to cast. Not effectively anyway." It's a situation she's far too familiar with.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
"Pa-pazuzu? Did you not say he was the King of Wind Dem-!#%$" Yuto's sentence is interrupted mid-way by the sudden sonic burst. The young man is nearly knocked down by the blast that takes him with the shield low.
For a few seconds, he just stands there in the front door trying to recover his mind from the overwhelming sound. Fortunately, the feeling seems to be giving up pretty fast.
Torra shakes her head to try and clear the ringing in her ears, then steps in front of Yuto who seems out of sorts. Now she has a clear line of sight to the corby priestess.
"Desecrating a shrine of Desna is bad luck. Really bad luck."
Teruko summons her own spell - though it does not counter the ringing in the ears of her allies, it does reaffirm their decisions and harden their will.
Torra, meanwhile, steps in front of Yuto and blasts the bird-woman into the wall, crushing her against the hard stone. She squawks, before shouting something in her language.
Suddenly, the white-feathered dire corby leaps up from the inner side of the castle walls, nearby to Riftun. With terrifying speed, it lashes out at him with its claws, tearing a tremendous gash across his chest. The bard just barely manages to get out of having his throat slit.
Red eyes narrow as the Phantom gazes at him. "Your friends, little toy, have gone too far this time. Fun though our time together was, it's time for you to die." Though the voice is a raspy caw, the words are, surprisingly, in Common.
"Riftun!" Andochtuir calls back, wide-eyed at the sudden scream of pain from behind him. "That thing just barely missed the carotid artery. Crafty bastard!" he observes, just as his surprise is tempered by experience and fear gives away to fury. "Help him! I'll keep the priestess busy!" he suggests, and mauls her in cold blood!
As the Priestess unleashes her cacophonous call Riftun wishes he had started a countersong instead but watching Yuto start to tense up he realizes that this is no time for regrets.
Infusing a bit of his arcane magic into his words, the red-headed bard calls out to Yuto, "Yuto! Fight through it, you're a hero!"
Sudden pain and fear shoot through the young man's body as the Phantom appears out of nowhere and carves deeply onto his chest. Tears fill his eyes as he staggers away from the corby clutching his profusely bleeding chest.
Fumbling through his bag Riftun withdraws and chuggs his own healing potion, feeling its healing properties surge through his body yet not nearly enough to repair all the damage that had been done to him by this suriprse assassin.
"A-At least I saved one person..."[b] The bard weeps whipping the remnants of the earthy potion from his lips and casting the vial aside. [B]"A-And the saddest part is... you could have been saved too."
He looks over his shoulder and cries out, tears still streaming from his eyes. "Torra, hit the Phantom!"
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Yuto overhears Riftun's voice over the whistle in his ears. Forcing himself to act, he grasps his katana more strongly before it falls, thanks to the epic words of his new friend.
Enduring the still hurting pain in his ears, and not knowing the Ghost will appear just in a few seconds at the group's back, Yuto strides towards the corby that dared defile Desna's shrine. Clenching his teeth, he slashes at the priest without realizing fully of the scene.
Riftun's magically-infused words resonate with Yuto, overwhelming his ringing ears and painful muscles. He clenches his katana in hand and rushes the priestess. The blade slashes viciously at her, and though it cuts deep into her stomach, she deflects it with her own, preventing it from doing as much damage as it might've done. Nevertheless, she shrieks in fury.
Despite Yuto being in between him and the dire corby priestess, Andochtuir whirls his polearm expertly around the samurai. He catches her on her inner arm, cutting through armor, feathers, flesh, and cutting deep into the bone. She staggers back, a soft, agonized caw emerging from her beak. An insane fury lights her eyes, however, and still she stands.
Meanwhile, Riftun backs desperately away from the dwarf-sized dire corby, drawing out a potion and drinking it. Despite its efficacy, it does not heal all of his wounds.
The priestess, meanwhile, tugs on her holy symbol, focusing on defense and casting both... before vanishing.
Torra shifts her attention to the albino corby, moving to Riftun's aid. "Get away from him! Come play with this toy, you coward!" the dwarf shouts as she thumps her chest with one fist, just as the other hand is flung forward to unleash the fury of the earth.
Yuto blinks a few times, perplexed at the priest's sudden vanishing "Whe-where did he go?!" he steps forward and tries to touch forward, at the two squares in front of the two closed doors. He gropes around trying to locate the missing priest, and maintains his ears attuned in order to hear any out of place noise.
"Invisibility! She's still here; look for blood on the floor." Teruko can't help with that; she's too far away. Meanwhile Riftun is in trouble behind her.
Whirling around, she loads her crossbow and fires directly at the ghost corby's chest.
Teruko sidesteps and fires her crossbow at the Phantom. The bolt slams through links in a shimmering chain shirt, and she growls, eyes narrowing. Torra swiftly adds her own blast to the mix, knocking the ghost corby off balance.
Meanwhile, in the dim light of the shrine, Yuto searches for the priestess... but finds no sign of her.
Outside, the ghost corby looks briefly at the odds arrayed against her. "I will return." She says darkly, before ripping the bolt free from her flank and disappearing without fanfare.
In the shrine, however, the doors to the northwest fly open, and two dire corbies stand nearby, a third lurking behind both. One growls, and lunges forwards at Yuto, its claws a blur of violence. The samurai, though caught briefly off-guard, keeps his armor and shield ready, deflecting and protecting himself from the new attackers.
The other , who presumably opened the door, steps inside, dodging and weaving to try to flank the samurai. However, despite its swiftness, he manages to get in a quick cut, which rends open its flank, though it seems mostly untroubled by this. Although Andochtuir attempts to keep it away from him with his own pole arm, it easily dances past its blade, preventing him from bringing it fully to bear.
The last of the three dire corbies uses its powerful legs to lunge forwards, leaping through the doorway, and lashes out with a frenzy of claws at the samurai. This time, he's not quite able to keep himself protected, and it manages to draw blood from his shoulder. The beast hastily licks its claw, before glowering hungrily at him again.
Suddenly, the phantom disappears just as fast as the priestess, and then three *more* new opponents rush in. Fortunately, they didn't seem that threatening... yet. He takes a step backward, and in the brief lull where Yuto skillfully kept all of them busy, drinks his a vial smelling strongly of earthen tones.
The next moment, his muscles begin to bulge, and he points the polearm straight at the corbies with almost palpable force, *daring* them to come closer! "Yuto! If you fall back from their surround, I could cover you! Make them pay the price for pursuing!"
Riftun can't help but to pat himself down, wide eyes, after the ghost corby has fled almost as if he can't quite believe he's still alive.
Beeathing a sigh of relief the bard turns, grateful to his two companions. "Th-Thank you Torra and Teruko. I-I think you managed to scare her off for now. Y-Yuto could still use some help though could you attack that corby direcflt behind him so he has room to back up?"
Andochtuir steps away from the dire corby, drawing and drinking a mutagen. As his muscles bulge and his mental faculties slow, he readies himself to attack the oncoming bird-men, should they seek to pursue Yuto.
Riftun offers insight to his two female companions, helping them see the vulnerabilities of one of the dire corbies.
There's no immediate sign of the priestess, however - if she's still around, she's not making much of a fuss.
Yuto blocks as much claws as he can with his shield, but he has no eyes in the back and one of them huts him. Revolving over himself, he suddenly finds a spot and slashes at the one in the back profiting the flanking with Andochtuir.
"O-ok!" trusting the more seasoned warrior, he backs up to the door, giving his back for a second but forcing the birds to face Andochtuir's reach if they want to attack them, plus bringing them closer to the outside light.
The Tian keeps his ears attentive, in case he overhears the feathered priest healing himself.
Dutifully, Torra shifts her attention again to the target indicated by Riftun. Yuto and Andochtuir were somewhat in the way, but she doesn't dare to leave Riftun's side in case the Phantom returns to finish what it started.
Teruko takes a step backwards, wanting to make sure she's close to Riftun in case he gets attacked again. Following his advice she fires her crossbow at the corby directly behind Yuto.
Teruko fires her crossbow at the badly wounded dire corby, which slams home in between its shoulder blades. Her projectile is swiftly followed up by Torra's blast, which cracks the thing's spine, and Yuto's slash, bisecting the creature and letting blood, bile, and half-digested food spill onto the ground.
Yuto steps swiftly back, trying to put distance between himself and the dire corbies, but leaves himself open to their vicious response. Though his armor takes some of the attacks, one claw cuts through the joint between his shoulder and arm, leaving him bleeding and stinging.
The two surviving dire corbies lunge forwards. One is unlucky, failing to avoid leaving itself open to Andochtuir's attack, but the half-elf's fauchard swings wide, and the bird-man is left unscathed. It screeches a battle cry and slashes at him with its claws. Though he manages to block most of the tearing talons, one does score a narrow cut across his neck - shallow, but painful.
The other dire corby pounces forwards, leaping towards Yuto. It easily denies Andochtuir the chance to attack it before clawing viciously at the samurai. The surprised youth lifts his shield, but the first two attacks are feints, and it rips through his armor around his stomach, tearing deep into the flesh beneath.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Riftun shields his eyes from the torrent of violence before him. The young bard is still new to this and it was all a bit much to handle while keeping down his breakfast.
Still, as his allies cry out in pain as the corbies get in some very unfortunate lucky hits he knows now is not the time to relax. "Yuto's getting hurt! Teruko do you think you could help him? Torra and Yuto! Focus down the one that just struck our Gentle Blade!"
"Not bad," Andochtuir growls at the black corby, somewhat frustrated by their great speed and agility. "But how long can you keep that up?" he taunts, and rends the bird back with his polearm!
The edge alignment was off - these corbies were fast ! - but his raw strength compensated well enough, the strike still tearing through flesh like butter.
Andochtuir falls back again, slashing a vicious, gaping wound in the chest of his foe. The dire corby shrieks in agony, red eyes narrowing, but remains on its feet. Riftun, meanwhile continues coordinating his allies' efforts.
"The priest, the priest is chanting some magic to the northeast of the room!" Yuto exclaims while trying to figure out how he should act in this situation. Badly bleeding already, he is grateful for Riftun to point him out from his better view of the field where to slash.
"I can't see her!" Torra responds in frustration as she tries to bring down the corbies she can see. Yuto was getting badly hurt, but the dwarf cannot stop admire the precision of his strike, and the sheer force of Andochtuir's attacks.
"The priest, the priest is chanting some magic to the northeast of the room!"
"Healing herself, most likely." Teruko quickly gives Yuto a look-over, practiced eyes tracking how he's moving. He's hurt, but not too badly. Killing the corbies so they can catch the priestess is her top priority right now.
Seeing both Yuto and Torra focus on one corby, she aims at the other and fires.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Teruko fires her crossbow at Andochtuir's target, aiming precisely between Yuto and the half-elf. The bolt strikes home, slamming into the creature's skull just behind its right eye. It shrieks in mindless fury, shaking itself viscerally.
Torra blasts the other dire corby, shattering its left arm and sending it into a spin that lets Yuto strike its head from its shoulders, killing it instantly.
"I'll play with you instead, then, little rock thrower..." Torra hears the soft words before two claws tear into her back and tear it open, ripping through her skin and displacing bones. Pain swallows her up and she feels the reassuring firmness of stone on her cheek.
The other heroes see the dwarf-sized albino dire corby reappear, its claws trailing blood as it opens up a tremendous gash in Torra's back that leaves her lying unconscious on the ground.
The surviving dire corby lets out a weak shriek, and lunges at Yuto, clawing viciously in the hopes of replicating its pale counterpart's success. Unfortunately for it, the samurai is both well-armored and totally prepared for its attack, and Yuto deflects its claws with his shield alone.
Drawn from the melee by another scream of pain followed by a distinct sound of wetness and tearing ligaments, Andochtuir whirls around. To his horror, he sees Torra hit the floor with grievous injuries.
He knew from his training that the best move was to ready his weapon and let the white corby come to him.
But that wasn't an option - not with both Riftun, Torra and Teruko all in its striking distance.
Instead, he rushes forward!
Riftun can't help but scream, his voice shrill at the sudden horror of seeing his stalwart companion, a steady rock in the face of danger and uncertainty collapse before the crushing force of this opponent.
His voice breaking with fear and concern for his dwarven ally the bard cries out to the others. "Andy, Yuto we need you here now! We can't afford to let the Phantom get away please! Help her!"
He steps out holding his arms wide and drawing his small dagger to cover the Phantom's methods of escape.
Andochtuir takes a heartbeat longer to react than he otherwise would, letting Riftun move to try to flank the Phantom Crow whilst offering insight into how to attack her. Unfortunately, this leaves him open to a retaliatory strike from the bloody-clawed ghost corby. She rips a chunk out of his chest in turn, arterial spray coating her feathers and armor red.
Andochtuir lashes out with his fauchard, but the Phantom casually knocks the haft aside with a single bloody claw and dodges the blade. "Pathetic." She looks to Riftun. "You too."
Engaged in combat with the corbi, Yuto has little chance to scare himself as the phantom onslaughts Torra. The young man slashes again at the same point, knowing the corbis are tough to fell.
If the creature finally falls, Yuto wrestles himself between trying to find the priest and helping the back, but he is finally carried over by Riftun's plea of help and strides all over next to the Phantom.
Teruko has no way to get to Riftun right now. She could heal Torra, but would that do any good when the ghost corby would just attack her again before she could even stand up? "I'm sorry," she whispers as she backs up a step. "I'll heal you in a second, I promise."
She hates seeing her companions fall and not being sure whether to heal them or keep fighting. She hates not knowing what to do. And Ameiko missed adventuring?
When her sister woke up, they were going to have a long discussion about her sanity.
Fully aware that her wandering thoughts are an attempt to distract herself from the reality of the situation, she turns her back on the ghost corby and fires directly at the dire corby behind Yuto. It looks badly injured; hopefully her bolt will be enough to kill it and let Yuto move away without getting stabbed in the back. "I've got that one, help Andochtuir so I can heal Torra!"
Teruko fires at the remaining dire corby, and her bolt strikes home, crashing into its ribcage and piercing deep, but still it stands - albeit only for a heartbeat before Yuto cuts it down, slashing its throat to the bone. Blood splashes his face before he turns and moves back to help his allies against the ghost corby.
"Hmph. Alright, you win this round." The ghost corby dodges around the manifold blades that menace her before leaping over the side of the wall - down fifteen feet - and lands lightly on her feet. With that, she dashes across the courtyard and over to the doors to the throne room.
Riftun clutches his chest bleeding heavily. He peers over the wall trying to keep an eye on the Phantom even as his body shakes and he can barely keep himself on his feet. "We... we can't let her get away... She'll pick us off one by one... Yuto... T-Teruko please shoot her... please." He leans on the wall breathing heavily, his vision blurring.
Things were going very poorly.