NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Seravin" data-source="post: 986678" data-attributes="member: 6783">The Continuing Assault on Broken SpireWilmors started up to the top of the tower intent on giving Dav a piece of his mind.  The twenty four year old thug from the city of Harrow had long ago learned the best way to treat those who were stupid enough to shout at the least little thing.  He wouldn’t kill Dav, but the idiot would learn to only shout at real threats.Halfway up the stairs he heard a thump and the stupid orc-bait yelling something to the guards in the courtyard.  Wilmors cursed and continued stalking up the ancient stairs.  It was a wonder that Milbourne didn’t hear them.   A dirty hand with long fingernails briefly touched the hilt of his sword.  Two years ago he might have killed Dav out of simple meanness, however he now followed Ranchefus and the priest’s words were law.  Nowadays it never even occurred to Wilmors to question Ranchefus.  More chillingly, to those who had known Wilmors, it never even occurred to the thug to wonder at his unquestioning obedience.At the top of the stairs the thug stopped and let his eyes adjust briefly to the gloom.  It didn’t take long as his eyes had adjusted during the climb up.  What he saw stunned him.  At first he thought it was Dav, but Dav didn’t use one of those fancy rapiers.  The figure turned and faced him and Wilmors was certain that he was seen.  Before he could react, the rapier wielder was moving towards him.  Wilmors knew he wasn’t going to react in time as his hand fumbled for his short-blade.  Ashimar turned towards the stairs intent on sneaking down and making sure there weren’t any guards below.  As he turned his enchanted vision noted a figure coming up the stairs.  “Hells.”  Muttered the rogue.  Even as he swore Ashimar was moving again.  He would have to silence the man before he could shout the alarm.  Ashimar started forward and luck deserted him again.Rotten timbers barely strong enough to hold their own weight gave way with a sudden crack as Ashimar’s two hundred pound frame stepped down hard on the ancient and weathered floorboards.  Wilmors started to breathe again.  He had been caught flat-footed and he knew it.  Just before the attacker had fallen, the thug had seen the body lying on the floorboards.  Dav was undoubtedly dead; and if he wasn’t he could be beaten later.  It was thirty feet below to stone paving.  There was some garbage down there, but the fall was almost certainly fatal.If Wilmors had been thinking a bit more clearly he would have gone for the alarm bell.  Instead, with adrenaline dancing in his veins, he shouted for the courtyard guards and made his way back down the stairs, drawing his sword as he did so.  If the man wasn’t dead then Ranchefus would want to question him – and pain was the best tool for interrogation.Meanwhile on the ground below, Kupier bade Lyntern to head to the keep.  The Imperial Scout then reached own and helped Kellron out of the spiked pit.  Kellron was thankful that his chain shirt had blunted the spikes.  Once the young warrior was out of the pit, the two men headed to the keep walls.  Panther and Jallarzi had already scaled the walls and Lyntern was halfway up. Once at the top of the keep wall Lyntern un-slung his bow and kept watch on the courtyard.  Kestral was the next to try and scale the wall, but her slight form was built more for agility then strength.  The woman fumbled briefly at the stone walls before Kellron and Kupier gave her a boost up.  Kestral cursed her weakness briefly but accepted the aid and scrambled up the rest of the way.Within the TowerHe should have been dead.  There was no way around it.  If a person can die from falling off a horse, then a drop from thirty feet should have splattered Ashimar across the floor of the tower of Broken Spire Keep.  Later when asked how he survived the drop Ashimar would only shrug and note that he was extremely competent – and lucky.Shaking his head Ashimar was able to stand up after the fall.  His body ached and he might have cracked some bones, but he was mostly intact.  His eyes refused to focus for a second, but he grabbed for his sword and lunged after the guard coming back down the tower stairs.  The good news was that there weren’t any guards at the bottom of the tower after all.OutsidePanther was up at the top of the tower now helping Jallarzi over the side.  There was no sign of Ashimar but there was a large hole in the floor.  From below his keen ears could hear the sharp ring of metal on metal.  Lyntern saw the guard come out into the courtyard from one of the buildings across the way and let fire with his bow; it was a clean miss.  Next to him Kestral did the same while Kupier and Kellron climbed the tower.  InsideAshimar and the dirty thug who was missing half his left ear exchanged another round of blows and parted.  Both were bleeding and both knew that they were nearly equally matched.Wilmors was betting that the intruder’s fall had weaken him – and it obviously had.  Ashimar was betting on his training with Kellron.  It had toughened him and made him far stronger than the casual street fights he had grown up on.  If life had turned out differently Ashimar may very well have been equally matched with Wilmors; but life hadn’t.  In a straight fight Ashimar was just ever so much better.Ashimar proved it on the third exchange, ignoring the pain in his side and lunging with all his strength into Wilmors.  The thug wore no apparent armor but he obviously had some sort of protection.  Ashimar’s attack was nearly turned aside as he traded finesse for strength – but he managed to push through the resistance anyway and the ugly thug began to cough up blood.Jallarzi finished him off with a single magic missile from the top of the stairs.  Seeing the opponent fall, she made her way down the stairs and looked around.  From the ground floor, the spiral stairs continued on down to the cellars below and there was short hallway from which the sorceress/wizard could see two doors - one open.  She moved herself away from the hallway and prepared her next spell.Panther, and Lyntern were quick to follow Jallarzi down the stairs as Ashimar pulled from their small collection of captured potions and drank down one marked with the symbol of Niela, Lady of Healing.  Sword cuts closed and bones knitted and Ashimar felt better.The guards were alerted, but the group was now inside and they didn’t hesitate to press their advantage.  Two guards almost immediately came in from the open doorway as Ashimar was draining the dregs of the potion but were cut down by arrows from Panther and Lyntern.  As Kestral, Kellron, and Kupier made their way across the top of the tower and down the stairs, Ashimar, Jallarzi, Panther, and Lyntern managed to drive back the next set of guards and close the door.Two minutes into the assault, the small group of seven had made their beach head into Broken Spire Keep.<edit - grammar, punctuation, and clarity></blockquote>

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