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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Nonlethal Force" data-source="post: 2854986" data-attributes="member: 35788">Rhema watched as Semeion lead Thana away from the village as quickly as possible.  Abijou and his rider, the Provenience, were in tow directly behind him.  Rhema turned back toward the villagers to yell more words of encouragement the people would need with respect to fleeing into the mountains.  She knew the people were already dependant upon the red wyrm – they would need someone to teach them to fend for themselves.  She hoped that this someone would not need to be her or Ischarus.  As she pondered which words of encouragement to use, the raging battle between Ischarus, Druff, and the two Drakontos female warriors caught her attention.From atop Elistra, Ischarus had a clear advantage.  Each blow that he struck drove more and more strength out of the arms of the Drakontos warriors.  Druff quickly learned to help defend Elistra from an attack while waiting for Ischarus to strike.  Once Ischarus had the opportunity to drive his sword down from his high position, Druff would be careful to stay out of the way so long as the opportunity had presented itself.  Three times Druff parried the attacks of one of the females and each time he followed the parry with a strike against the same female that Ischarus fought.Once more Ischarus struck and knocked the female’s weapon clean from her hand.  Without thinking about the fact that she was now unarmed, Druff followed up Ischarus’ attack with a simple strike of his own.  The blow landed cleanly as the steel pierced the female’s chest.   Her eyes widened in amazement at the pain and her pierced lungs searched for breath it could not find.  The female’s eyes became vacant and rolled back as she slumped over dead.Ischarus began to chastise Druff, but then realized that Rhema’s power did not have the ability to transfer their honor code.  Druff was used to killing his enemies.  That was what had made him great in the Drakontos village.  There would be no way to alter his aggressive onslaught without having time to talk to him and convince him otherwise.  They did not have that time now.Rhema yelled when she saw that the female Drakontos warrior had been dispatched.  “Ischarus, we must move now before the beast above is aroused by the commotion!”Ischarus heard Rhema’s cry as he teamed up with Druff against the remaining Drakontos female.  “Drive her off, Druff!” Ischarus commanded from atop his horse.  The Drakontos warrior saw the tactical position that Ischarus was trying to guide Druff into.  She knew that if she was driven back from the horseman that she would be open to an attack from a charging horse.  One blow from Ischarus with the momentum of the horse behind him could certainly finish her off.  Her only choice was to flee now that her own partner had been slain by Druff.  As the female pulled away from the skirmish, Druff began to pursue his Drakontos kinswoman.Ischarus watched Druff as the warrior backed away from them.  “No!” Ischarus called out to Druff.  “Let her go, Druff.  She’ll not get far.  You must help the villagers to flee!”Rhema’s eyes widened with excitement as she heard Ischarus’ voice.  Knowing that her control over Druff would give her the advantage she needed she yelled from across the stone altar.  “No, Druff, pursue her.  Pursue her quickly and do not let her escape!”  Her voice was strong in spite of the fact that she did not enjoy contradicting Ischarus.Ischarus spun Elistra around to face Rhema at her immediate contradiction of his orders to Druff.  He knew Druff would listen to her over himself on account of her power.  She would need a good reason to have countermanded his tactical order.  Combat was his area of expertise.Before he could speak, Rhema yelled to Ischarus. “It’s time to go, Ischarus.  The people are fleeing and we need to move to catch up to Semeion.  If he goes into the tunnels too far we’ll lose him!”Without a word, Druff leapt into motion and chased after the female Drakontos warrior.  He had little chance of catching the more fleet of foot woman, but he was determined to satisfy Rhema’s command.  The woman began to pull away from Druff and Rhema smiled as the pair of Drakontos headed in the opposite direction that she and Ischarus would use for their retreat.  They fled away from the direction that most of the villagers would use to get to the mountains.Ischarus spurred Elistra into motion and the horse jerked suddenly as it rounded the altar to approach Rhema. As he approached, Rhema could tell he was confused and not pleased at all by what had happened between her and Druff.Ischarus yelled as he drew closer to Rhema.  “Why did you correct me?  Druff could have been invaluable in focusing the people into their retreat!” Rhema simply smiled and responded, “And what would you have done when my power over him ran out?  He would have begun slaughtering the innocents in his rage against us!  This way he is heading in the opposite direction as we are – and perhaps more importantly in an opposite direction than his own people.”Ischarus gave another scornful look to Rhema, but he knew she was right.  Rhema had made the right call. As helpful as Druff might have been in getting the people to the underground mountain passes, he would had been a terrific liability once Rhema lost control.Rhema ignored Ischarus’ scornful glance and spun Shauvry around so she was facing the same direction as Elistra.  Her fingers tightened firmly around the reigns as she heard Ischarus begin to spur Elistra into motion once more.  As he lunged by Rhema and Shauvry, Ischarus called out to his associate, “Then we’d best make full use of our time with Druff heading the other way.  Semeion managed to get Druff’s horse from him, but there is no accounting for the fact that he could probably easily get another.  We best hurry and use this time wisely!”Rhema spurred Shauvry into action and followed Ischarus back into the woods.  Their plan had worked better than they hoped so far.  The Provenience was safe; meaning that for a season there would be no more kin of the dragon produced in this village.  The red dragon had lost its claim over the people as slaves.  Sure, the dragon still awed the people to fear; but the people were at least free and on the path to making their own survival decisions.  She watched the mass of refugees fleeing the Drakontos village and hurriedly moving toward the underground passages.  She knew that Ischarus – and Semeion before him – had intentionally chosen a different path back to the mountains than the refugees.  Their paths would part soon.  With luck, they would reach the mountains before the red dragon could be alerted to the situation and hunt them down.[Sblock=Color Free Speech Section]Rhema watched as Semeion lead Thana away from the village as quickly as possible. Abijou and his rider, the Provenience, were in tow directly behind him. Rhema turned back toward the villagers to yell more words of encouragement the people would need with respect to fleeing into the mountains. She knew the people were already dependant upon the red wyrm – they would need someone to teach them to fend for themselves. She hoped that this someone would not need to be her or Ischarus. As she pondered which words of encouragement to use, the raging battle between Ischarus, Druff, and the two Drakontos female warriors caught her attention.From atop Elistra, Ischarus had a clear advantage. Each blow that he struck drove more and more strength out of the arms of the Drakontos warriors. Druff quickly learned to help defend Elistra from an attack while waiting for Ischarus to strike. Once Ischarus had the opportunity to drive his sword down from his high position, Druff would be careful to stay out of the way so long as the opportunity had presented itself. Three times Druff parried the attacks of one of the females and each time he followed the parry with a strike against the same female that Ischarus fought.Once more Ischarus struck and knocked the female’s weapon clean from her hand. Without thinking about the fact that she was now unarmed, Druff followed up Ischarus’ attack with a simple strike of his own. The blow landed cleanly as the steel pierced the female’s chest. Her eyes widened in amazement at the pain and her pierced lungs searched for breath it could not find. The female’s eyes became vacant and rolled back as she slumped over dead.Ischarus began to chastise Druff, but then realized that Rhema’s power did not have the ability to transfer their honor code. Druff was used to killing his enemies. That was what had made him great in the Drakontos village. There would be no way to alter his aggressive onslaught without having time to talk to him and convince him otherwise. They did not have that time now.Rhema yelled when she saw that the female Drakontos warrior had been dispatched. “Ischarus, we must move now before the beast above is aroused by the commotion!”Ischarus heard Rhema’s cry as he teamed up with Druff against the remaining Drakontos female. “Drive her off, Druff!” Ischarus commanded from atop his horse. The Drakontos warrior saw the tactical position that Ischarus was trying to guide Druff into. She knew that if she was driven back from the horseman that she would be open to an attack from a charging horse. One blow from Ischarus with the momentum of the horse behind him could certainly finish her off. Her only choice was to flee now that her own partner had been slain by Druff. As the female pulled away from the skirmish, Druff began to pursue his Drakontos kinswoman.Ischarus watched Druff as the warrior backed away from them. “No!” Ischarus called out to Druff. “Let her go, Druff. She’ll not get far. You must help the villagers to flee!”Rhema’s eyes widened with excitement as she heard Ischarus’ voice. Knowing that her control over Druff would give her the advantage she needed she yelled from across the stone altar. “No, Druff, pursue her. Pursue her quickly and do not let her escape!” Her voice was strong in spite of the fact that she did not enjoy contradicting Ischarus.Ischarus spun Elistra around to face Rhema at her immediate contradiction of his orders to Druff. He knew Druff would listen to her over himself on account of her power. She would need a good reason to have countermanded his tactical order. Combat was his area of expertise.Before he could speak, Rhema yelled to Ischarus. “It’s time to go, Ischarus. The people are fleeing and we need to move to catch up to Semeion. If he goes into the tunnels too far we’ll lose him!”Without a word, Druff leapt into motion and chased after the female Drakontos warrior. He had little chance of catching the more fleet of foot woman, but he was determined to satisfy Rhema’s command. The woman began to pull away from Druff and Rhema smiled as the pair of Drakontos headed in the opposite direction that she and Ischarus would use for their retreat. They fled away from the direction that most of the villagers would use to get to the mountains.Ischarus spurred Elistra into motion and the horse jerked suddenly as it rounded the altar to approach Rhema. As he approached, Rhema could tell he was confused and not pleased at all by what had happened between her and Druff.Ischarus yelled as he drew closer to Rhema. “Why did you correct me? Druff could have been invaluable in focusing the people into their retreat!” Rhema simply smiled and responded, “And what would you have done when my power over him ran out? He would have begun slaughtering the innocents in his rage against us! This way he is heading in the opposite direction as we are – and perhaps more importantly in an opposite direction than his own people.”Ischarus gave another scornful look to Rhema, but he knew she was right. Rhema had made the right call. As helpful as Druff might have been in getting the people to the underground mountain passes, he would had been a terrific liability once Rhema lost control.Rhema ignored Ischarus’ scornful glance and spun Shauvry around so she was facing the same direction as Elistra. Her fingers tightened firmly around the reigns as she heard Ischarus begin to spur Elistra into motion once more. As he lunged by Rhema and Shauvry, Ischarus called out to his associate, “Then we’d best make full use of our time with Druff heading the other way. Semeion managed to get Druff’s horse from him, but there is no accounting for the fact that he could probably easily get another. We best hurry and use this time wisely!”Rhema spurred Shauvry into action and followed Ischarus back into the woods. Their plan had worked better than they hoped so far. The Provenience was safe; meaning that for a season there would be no more kin of the dragon produced in this village. The red dragon had lost its claim over the people as slaves. Sure, the dragon still awed the people to fear; but the people were at least free and on the path to making their own survival decisions. She watched the mass of refugees fleeing the Drakontos village and hurriedly moving toward the underground passages. She knew that Ischarus – and Semeion before him – had intentionally chosen a different path back to the mountains than the refugees. Their paths would part soon. With luck, they would reach the mountains before the red dragon could be alerted to the situation and hunt them down.[/Sblock]</blockquote>

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