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<blockquote data-quote="DustinGebhardt" data-source="post: 5393105" data-attributes="member: 82905">Session 34&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; Session 34&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; The Battle Against Jakub ContinuesOutside,&nbsp; Kamal rushed to the kneeling Karyan. He felt the power of his&nbsp; prepared&nbsp; spells in his mind and found a more potent one. Then,&nbsp; concentrating,&nbsp; the priest let the structure of the spell slip away and&nbsp; conjured it&nbsp; instead as a powerful healing touch. Karyan's wounds closed,&nbsp; but&nbsp; remained bruised; the ranger nodded her thanks and, slinging her&nbsp; bow on&nbsp; her unwounded shoulder, drew out a potion and swallowed it in one&nbsp;&nbsp; gulp. Her bruising eased, and her breathing became more controlled.&nbsp;&nbsp; &quot;There now,&quot; Kamal said warmly, &quot;Feeling-&quot; His concern was cut short as&nbsp;&nbsp; two of the fiend's arrows pierced his finely made armor. Neither shaft&nbsp;&nbsp; struck deeply, but both drew a heavy amount of blood and the priest&nbsp;&nbsp; staggered. Behind Kamal, Mythyria fired four unerring missiles at&nbsp;&nbsp; the mounted archer Jakub. Karyan took a defensive stance in from of&nbsp;&nbsp; Kamal and let two arrows fly at the fleeing invaders-dropping both of&nbsp;&nbsp; her targets. Behind her, Kamal prays for the healing light of Sarenrae&nbsp;&nbsp; and is answered with a surge of warm light that closes some of his&nbsp;&nbsp; wounds and even more of Karyan's. Well timed too, as two more of&nbsp;&nbsp; Jakub's arrows fly into the cleric. One opens a piercing that had only&nbsp;&nbsp; just closed, ripping his flesh and causing the man to sway and nearly&nbsp;&nbsp; lose his feet. Mythyria lets fly another volley of magical darts, but&nbsp;&nbsp; this time the energy is just absorbed in the demon Jakub's skin. Kamal&nbsp;&nbsp; maneuvers out of sight and prays again for the healing light of his&nbsp;&nbsp; goddess; more warm light washes over those left on the ground. Karyan,&nbsp;&nbsp; seeing the ineffectiveness of shooting the rider, instead levels her bow&nbsp;&nbsp; at the fiery horse. She lets loose two shots in rapid succession, and&nbsp;&nbsp; both connect solidly into the steed. It loses some altitude and bucks,&nbsp;&nbsp; but Jakub shows no sign of losing his saddle.&nbsp;The fiendish human&nbsp;&nbsp; locks eyes with the ranger that dared to attack his mount; he let fly&nbsp;&nbsp; another of his deadly arrows. The missile pierced Karyan's armor but&nbsp;&nbsp; most of its force was absorbed by the protective plates. The small force&nbsp;&nbsp; of humans remaining on the ground regrouped to make a final charge on&nbsp;&nbsp; the companions; knowing that their airborne leader would support the&nbsp;&nbsp; effort. &quot;That will be far enough boys&quot; Mythyria said with a smirk.&nbsp;&nbsp; The elf's fingers waved frantically but controlled as she incanted and&nbsp;&nbsp; arcane words and retrieved the components of one of her most potent&nbsp;&nbsp; spells. A tiny bead of orange streaked into the gathered humans, and&nbsp;&nbsp; before any of them could react, it exploded engulfing them all in&nbsp;&nbsp; flames. Only two of the gathered eight remained standing, and the spell&nbsp;&nbsp; was sufficient to turn their heels.&quot;Oh no ya don't!&quot; Hekuba takes&nbsp;&nbsp; aim with his crossbow and let fly. The bolt sinks into one of the&nbsp;&nbsp; fleeing thug's arms, but the man growls through the pain and continues&nbsp;&nbsp; running. &quot;Never mind them good orc! That is our target!&quot; Hoppup&nbsp;&nbsp; indicated the half-fiend and its hellish steed while cautiously getting&nbsp;&nbsp; in closer range.The rest of the group follow the lead of the&nbsp;&nbsp; Nythyian and take refuge behind buildings to obstruct Jakub's view of&nbsp;&nbsp; them. All that is except for Karyan and Mort. With courage defying&nbsp;&nbsp; her wounds, the ranger loosed another two arrows at the Nightmare; it&nbsp;&nbsp; dodges the first, but the second cleanly sinks into its flank. Another&nbsp;&nbsp; small bottle falls to the ground from seemingly nowhere. Mort spots a&nbsp;&nbsp; set of stairs. &quot;Guys! We can get higher, and get to him!&quot; He yells back&nbsp;&nbsp; as he bounds up; taking the stone steps two and three at a time. Jakub&nbsp;&nbsp; flies his steed closer to the wall while shooting once more at Karyan.&nbsp;&nbsp; The half-fiend screams something at the ranger, but it is lost in the&nbsp;&nbsp; wind.&quot;Karyan, we need to get higher, and you need to stop&nbsp; bleeding!&quot;&nbsp; Kamal calls the ranger to his side. She hurries to him as&nbsp; the whole&nbsp; group begins to make their way up the stairs Mort discovered.&nbsp; The cleric&nbsp; expends another of his spells to close more of Karyan's&nbsp; wounds. Just as&nbsp; the group has reached the bottom of the wall, Mort&nbsp; bounds out of an&nbsp; upper level opening on the wall and leaps the space&nbsp; left open between&nbsp; the huge wooden doors. As she runs, Mythyria conjures&nbsp; a ghostly hand&nbsp; that she can use to deliver spells to her opponents.The&nbsp; monk begins&nbsp; to taunt Jakub, and the fiend obliges with another deadly&nbsp; arrow. The&nbsp; projectile misses its mark however, as Jakub flies closer&nbsp; still to the&nbsp; group. While they climb, Hoppup summons an insectoid ally&nbsp; the resembles a&nbsp; flying ant the size of an average dog. Kamal calls down&nbsp; the power of&nbsp; Sarenrae and a healing wave washes over those in the&nbsp; group around him.&quot;Wait!&nbsp; Karyan, Hekuba, over here. Each of you&nbsp; gather ten of your arrows or&nbsp; bolts, I have an idea.&quot; Kamal stops the&nbsp; two before they climb even a&nbsp; singe step. With Mort's taunts echoing&nbsp; above, the cleric calls forth a&nbsp; ribbon of light and ties it around the&nbsp; missiles; they retain a slight&nbsp; shimmer as the two companions replace&nbsp; them in their quivers. The hum of&nbsp; wings can be heard as the summoned&nbsp; ant flies toward Jakub, even as the&nbsp; half-fiend fires another arrow at&nbsp; Mort that misses the agile monk. A&nbsp; second arrow flies from Jakub's bow&nbsp; as his steed passes the wall and&nbsp; begins circling back. This arrow&nbsp; pierces the approaching ant through the&nbsp; thorax, sending it careening&nbsp; toward the ground; lifeless before it&nbsp; knows the impact. Seeing the&nbsp; height and time it would take to traverse&nbsp; the stairs, Karyan and Hekuba&nbsp; start to climb a smaller building to get a&nbsp; better vantage at Jakub.&nbsp; Hoppup, Kamal and Mythyria each cast spells&nbsp; into their palms but let&nbsp; the power stay there without releasing. Each of&nbsp; them waiting for Jakub&nbsp; to come into clear view.Mythyria gets the&nbsp; first chance and lets&nbsp; loose four glowing bolts that connect to the&nbsp; nightmare. Jakub still&nbsp; keeps his saddle and fires again at Mort. Again&nbsp; the monk taunts the&nbsp; half-fiend; though the arrow would have hit, Mort&nbsp; uses uncouth speed to&nbsp; knock it harmlessly away. Karyan gains the top of&nbsp; the small building,&nbsp; while Hekuba struggles to find the grips the human&nbsp; did. She readies an&nbsp; arrow and perceives that Jakub has not taken notice&nbsp; of her. A smile&nbsp; crosses her face as Hekuba's hand at last grips the&nbsp; roof. The rest of&nbsp; the group makes way for the stairs once more leaving&nbsp; Kamal, Hekuba, and&nbsp; Karyan below. Jakub lets two arrows fly toward Mort.&nbsp; The agile elf&nbsp; dodges one and smacks the other away.&quot;You really need&nbsp; to learn how&nbsp; to use that thing!&quot; The monk yells, not caring whether or&nbsp; not Jakub can&nbsp; hear him. The nightmare whinnies as Karyan's arrow, now&nbsp; glowing with&nbsp; holy light, sinks into its haunch. Jakub turns in his&nbsp; saddle and raises&nbsp; his bow toward the ranger.&quot;Hey ugly! Did'ya forget&nbsp; about me?!&quot;&nbsp; Mort tries to regain Jakub's attention to no avail. The&nbsp; half-fiend&nbsp; fires two shots at the ranger, and Karyan cries out as both&nbsp; projectiles&nbsp; find their mark. &quot;Worry not, keep shooting the horse!&quot;&nbsp; Kamal calls&nbsp; up to the ranger as the cleric channels more divine energy&nbsp; around&nbsp; himself. The healing wave steadies Karyan and she fires another&nbsp; glowing&nbsp; arrow. The missile makes an audible thud as it drives deep&nbsp; enough into&nbsp; the creature to pierce its heart. The steed falters, then&nbsp; rider and&nbsp; mount fall. Jakub kicks off the nightmare and unfurls wings of&nbsp; his own.&nbsp; The half-fiend cannot get enough momentum to arrest his fall.&nbsp; He&nbsp; manages to trade an arrow with Karyan and dodge a crossbow bolt fired&nbsp;&nbsp; by Hekuba before landing in front of Mort.&quot;Now we see how you&nbsp;&nbsp; really fight.&quot; Jakub's voice was an imposing bass that resonated with a&nbsp;&nbsp; hiss like a volcanic steam vent. The towering half-fiend made an&nbsp; arching&nbsp; swipe with a longsword that hummed with a shadowy palpable evil&nbsp; force.&nbsp; The agile Mort waited til the very last moment then rolled his&nbsp; torso&nbsp; backward, leaving Jakub to growl in frustration as his blade's&nbsp; momentum&nbsp; carried it harmlessly over the monk. Mort deftly moved his&nbsp; hands to the&nbsp; stone crown atop his head and used the power inside to&nbsp; harden his skin&nbsp; from an already resilient leather to that of stone. The&nbsp; half-fiend&nbsp; roared with rage and brought his second sword to bear, he&nbsp; feigned&nbsp; another high blow and as Mort rolled his body under the blow,&nbsp; Jakub&nbsp; followed with the other blade, digging into the monk's side. Mort&nbsp;&nbsp; faltered in his dodge, and the first sword came down to slice his&nbsp;&nbsp; shoulder. The monk let out cry of pain but took hope to see Mythyria at&nbsp;&nbsp; last arrive at the top of the stairs. The wizardress released a spell&nbsp; as&nbsp; soon as Jakub was in her line of sight; the half-fiend cried in pain&nbsp; as&nbsp; crackling black energy ripple over his body. Mort seized the&nbsp;&nbsp; opportunity to press an advantage; he let fly a flurry of fists and feet&nbsp;&nbsp; too fast to follow with normal vision. Despite the enfeebling energy&nbsp; he&nbsp; had just suffered, Jakub managed to dodge the first blow and block&nbsp; two&nbsp; more. Then two kicks hit in rapid succession against the&nbsp; half-fiend's&nbsp; exposed side. His infernal resilience absorbed one blow,&nbsp; but the other&nbsp; connected solidly; Mort heard a telltale crack and was&nbsp; sure that a rib&nbsp; had broken. The monk smiled, as did Jakub; the&nbsp; half-fiend brought his&nbsp; swords back into an offensive position then&nbsp; cried in pain.Behind&nbsp; Jakub, Eriks' invisibility dispelled with a&nbsp; quick flash as his thinblade&nbsp; pierced both of Jakub's kidneys. The&nbsp; half-fiend roared in pain and&nbsp; unfurled his leathery bat-like wings. He&nbsp; takes to the air as Mort&nbsp; retreats to the stairway. Mythyria aims a&nbsp; fiery ray of arcane power at&nbsp; the fleeing Jakub and releases; the spell&nbsp; bounces off the half-fiend's&nbsp; skin like a small rock hitting a tree.&nbsp; Hekuba appears behind the elf and&nbsp; quickly fires a crossbow bolt at the&nbsp; flying target. The bolt is&nbsp; repelled in much the same manner as the&nbsp; spell and Jakub gains more&nbsp; altitude. Eriks, using the still active&nbsp; power in his boots flies in&nbsp; pursuit of his sister's bane but Jakub has a&nbsp; substantial lead and&nbsp; continues to gain the advantage of height; the&nbsp; villain casts a spell&nbsp; over himself while flying and a shimmer flashes&nbsp; over him. Mythyria, down&nbsp; to her less powerful spells, lets loose four&nbsp; more bolts of arcane&nbsp; energy. They are absorbed in Jakub's flesh and he&nbsp; makes no sign of&nbsp; slowing. Then, Hoppup appears, his hand aglow with&nbsp; built up magics he&nbsp; has been storing during his climb of the stairs. In&nbsp; much the same manner&nbsp; as Mythyria, the lizard wizard releases arcane&nbsp; bolts; instead of four&nbsp; however, twelve of the missiles appear and&nbsp; explode onto the fleeing&nbsp; Jakub. The half-fiend cries in pain and&nbsp; falters. Before he can regain&nbsp; control of his flight, Eriks is upon him.&nbsp; The rogue flies in close with&nbsp; his body horizontally aligned. With his&nbsp; off hand he grabs the still&nbsp; writhing Jakub by the shoulder, matching&nbsp; the rhythm of the beat of those&nbsp; leathery wings. Eriks brings his mouth&nbsp; to the ear of Jakub and whispers&nbsp; in a voice more sinister than he&nbsp; thought himself capable of. &quot;This, is&nbsp; for my sister.&quot; The human drives&nbsp; his blade, its glowing holy energy&nbsp; piercing all defenses through the&nbsp; back of his foe. Jakub finches and&nbsp; reaches for a blade of his own, but&nbsp; Eriks is the quicker. The rogue&nbsp; pulls his blade free, then releasing&nbsp; his grip on his enemy's shoulder&nbsp; drives his blade through the back of&nbsp; his neck and out of Jakub's own&nbsp; mouth. A gurgle of blood and bile are&nbsp; the last sounds made as Jakub&nbsp; plummets fifty feet back onto the city&nbsp; wall. Karyan comes to the top&nbsp; of the stairs just as Jakub falls,&nbsp; and fires her bow at her own&nbsp; personal demon. If Eriks' blade, and the&nbsp; fall had not finished him, the&nbsp; ranger's shot surely would have. Still&nbsp; glowing with the holy energy&nbsp; Kamal had bestowed upon it, her arrow flew&nbsp; straight into the left eye of&nbsp; the falling fiend burying itself to the&nbsp; shaft and protruding out the&nbsp; creature's skull.The companions&nbsp; gathered around the fallen Jakub and stared for a moment. Karyan, with a&nbsp; fire of death itself in her eyes approached the broken creature with&nbsp; her sword drawn. Saying not a word and giving no regard for the&nbsp; half-fiend's modesty, she ripped away his breeches, lifted her sword&nbsp; high, and swung a huge downward arc; eliminating evidence of Jakub's&nbsp; masculinity. &quot;Good Karyan, please...&quot; Kamal was stopped short by Eriks. &quot;She needs this priest, let her be.&quot;The&nbsp; ranger then kicked her severed prize away from its host and fell to her&nbsp; knees. With a scream born of terror and rising into a shout of victory&nbsp; she reversed the grip on her blade and drove the pommel into the flesh&nbsp; before. She continued this until all that was left before her was a dark&nbsp; red smear of flesh.None of the other companions felt it wise to disturb the ranger, so they quietly went to shedding Jakub of his equipment.&quot;The&nbsp; bow, both blades, the scabbard, both rings, the cloak, the belt, the&nbsp; armor, and the necklace.&quot; Mythyria, using her ability to see unseen&nbsp; auras of magic reported the items worth inspecting further. Hekuba&nbsp; reached for the swords, but was cut short by Eriks. &quot;Hold friend, you&nbsp; may not have seen, but at least one of these blades is filled with&nbsp; malice.&quot; The rogue closed his eyes and, in the same way Mythyria focuses&nbsp; on magic, attuned his vision to see the evidence of evil around&nbsp; himself. He opened his eyes and indicated the same sword that had hummed&nbsp; with vile energy before. &quot;I'll hold on to this, we need to have it&nbsp; destroyed.&quot; Eriks announced to the group. Taking a winter blanket that&nbsp; had seen no use since arriving on the Isle of Dread, the human wrapped&nbsp; the blade and stowed it away. &quot;Look!&quot; Hoppup had moved to the edge&nbsp; of the wall, and when the others joined him, they could see what he&nbsp; spotted. Nythyians, dozens of them, presumably the villagers were&nbsp; emerging from small buildings all around and looking through the bodies&nbsp; left on the ground and up at the triumphant heroes. &quot;Lets burn this&nbsp; body.&quot; Kamal indicated toward Jakub, &quot;I do not wish him to ever return.&quot;&nbsp; The group agreed and as Hoppup and Mythyria began gathering magical&nbsp; fire Eriks stepped in front. &quot;Hold a moment please.&quot; The Nythyian seemed&nbsp; just as content to let the fire dance around his hands, while Mythyria&nbsp; though clearly not singed by her own flame gave a rather annoyed look at&nbsp; the human. Eriks worked quickly, ruining a plain dagger, and sawed the&nbsp; right horn off of Jakub's lifeless head. &quot;Proceed.&quot; the rogue said with a&nbsp; triumphant smile. The arcanists let loose their combined power and the&nbsp; body of Jakub was engulfed in short order.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="DustinGebhardt, post: 5393105, member: 82905"] [b]Session 34[/b] [FONT=Arial][B] Session 34 [/B] [B]The Battle Against Jakub Continues [/B] Outside, Kamal rushed to the kneeling Karyan. He felt the power of his prepared spells in his mind and found a more potent one. Then, concentrating, the priest let the structure of the spell slip away and conjured it instead as a powerful healing touch. Karyan's wounds closed, but remained bruised; the ranger nodded her thanks and, slinging her bow on her unwounded shoulder, drew out a potion and swallowed it in one gulp. Her bruising eased, and her breathing became more controlled. "There now," Kamal said warmly, "Feeling-" His concern was cut short as two of the fiend's arrows pierced his finely made armor. Neither shaft struck deeply, but both drew a heavy amount of blood and the priest staggered. Behind Kamal, Mythyria fired four unerring missiles at the mounted archer Jakub. Karyan took a defensive stance in from of Kamal and let two arrows fly at the fleeing invaders-dropping both of her targets. Behind her, Kamal prays for the healing light of Sarenrae and is answered with a surge of warm light that closes some of his wounds and even more of Karyan's. Well timed too, as two more of Jakub's arrows fly into the cleric. One opens a piercing that had only just closed, ripping his flesh and causing the man to sway and nearly lose his feet. Mythyria lets fly another volley of magical darts, but this time the energy is just absorbed in the demon Jakub's skin. Kamal maneuvers out of sight and prays again for the healing light of his goddess; more warm light washes over those left on the ground. Karyan, seeing the ineffectiveness of shooting the rider, instead levels her bow at the fiery horse. She lets loose two shots in rapid succession, and both connect solidly into the steed. It loses some altitude and bucks, but Jakub shows no sign of losing his saddle. The fiendish human locks eyes with the ranger that dared to attack his mount; he let fly another of his deadly arrows. The missile pierced Karyan's armor but most of its force was absorbed by the protective plates. The small force of humans remaining on the ground regrouped to make a final charge on the companions; knowing that their airborne leader would support the effort. "That will be far enough boys" Mythyria said with a smirk. The elf's fingers waved frantically but controlled as she incanted and arcane words and retrieved the components of one of her most potent spells. A tiny bead of orange streaked into the gathered humans, and before any of them could react, it exploded engulfing them all in flames. Only two of the gathered eight remained standing, and the spell was sufficient to turn their heels. "Oh no ya don't!" Hekuba takes aim with his crossbow and let fly. The bolt sinks into one of the fleeing thug's arms, but the man growls through the pain and continues running. "Never mind them good orc! That is our target!" Hoppup indicated the half-fiend and its hellish steed while cautiously getting in closer range. The rest of the group follow the lead of the Nythyian and take refuge behind buildings to obstruct Jakub's view of them. All that is except for Karyan and Mort. With courage defying her wounds, the ranger loosed another two arrows at the Nightmare; it dodges the first, but the second cleanly sinks into its flank. Another small bottle falls to the ground from seemingly nowhere. Mort spots a set of stairs. "Guys! We can get higher, and get to him!" He yells back as he bounds up; taking the stone steps two and three at a time. Jakub flies his steed closer to the wall while shooting once more at Karyan. The half-fiend screams something at the ranger, but it is lost in the wind. "Karyan, we need to get higher, and you need to stop bleeding!" Kamal calls the ranger to his side. She hurries to him as the whole group begins to make their way up the stairs Mort discovered. The cleric expends another of his spells to close more of Karyan's wounds. Just as the group has reached the bottom of the wall, Mort bounds out of an upper level opening on the wall and leaps the space left open between the huge wooden doors. As she runs, Mythyria conjures a ghostly hand that she can use to deliver spells to her opponents. The monk begins to taunt Jakub, and the fiend obliges with another deadly arrow. The projectile misses its mark however, as Jakub flies closer still to the group. While they climb, Hoppup summons an insectoid ally the resembles a flying ant the size of an average dog. Kamal calls down the power of Sarenrae and a healing wave washes over those in the group around him. "Wait! Karyan, Hekuba, over here. Each of you gather ten of your arrows or bolts, I have an idea." Kamal stops the two before they climb even a singe step. With Mort's taunts echoing above, the cleric calls forth a ribbon of light and ties it around the missiles; they retain a slight shimmer as the two companions replace them in their quivers. The hum of wings can be heard as the summoned ant flies toward Jakub, even as the half-fiend fires another arrow at Mort that misses the agile monk. A second arrow flies from Jakub's bow as his steed passes the wall and begins circling back. This arrow pierces the approaching ant through the thorax, sending it careening toward the ground; lifeless before it knows the impact. Seeing the height and time it would take to traverse the stairs, Karyan and Hekuba start to climb a smaller building to get a better vantage at Jakub. Hoppup, Kamal and Mythyria each cast spells into their palms but let the power stay there without releasing. Each of them waiting for Jakub to come into clear view. Mythyria gets the first chance and lets loose four glowing bolts that connect to the nightmare. Jakub still keeps his saddle and fires again at Mort. Again the monk taunts the half-fiend; though the arrow would have hit, Mort uses uncouth speed to knock it harmlessly away. Karyan gains the top of the small building, while Hekuba struggles to find the grips the human did. She readies an arrow and perceives that Jakub has not taken notice of her. A smile crosses her face as Hekuba's hand at last grips the roof. The rest of the group makes way for the stairs once more leaving Kamal, Hekuba, and Karyan below. Jakub lets two arrows fly toward Mort. The agile elf dodges one and smacks the other away. "You really need to learn how to use that thing!" The monk yells, not caring whether or not Jakub can hear him. The nightmare whinnies as Karyan's arrow, now glowing with holy light, sinks into its haunch. Jakub turns in his saddle and raises his bow toward the ranger. "Hey ugly! Did'ya forget about me?!" Mort tries to regain Jakub's attention to no avail. The half-fiend fires two shots at the ranger, and Karyan cries out as both projectiles find their mark. "Worry not, keep shooting the horse!" Kamal calls up to the ranger as the cleric channels more divine energy around himself. The healing wave steadies Karyan and she fires another glowing arrow. The missile makes an audible thud as it drives deep enough into the creature to pierce its heart. The steed falters, then rider and mount fall. Jakub kicks off the nightmare and unfurls wings of his own. The half-fiend cannot get enough momentum to arrest his fall. He manages to trade an arrow with Karyan and dodge a crossbow bolt fired by Hekuba before landing in front of Mort. "Now we see how you really fight." Jakub's voice was an imposing bass that resonated with a hiss like a volcanic steam vent. The towering half-fiend made an arching swipe with a longsword that hummed with a shadowy palpable evil force. The agile Mort waited til the very last moment then rolled his torso backward, leaving Jakub to growl in frustration as his blade's momentum carried it harmlessly over the monk. Mort deftly moved his hands to the stone crown atop his head and used the power inside to harden his skin from an already resilient leather to that of stone. The half-fiend roared with rage and brought his second sword to bear, he feigned another high blow and as Mort rolled his body under the blow, Jakub followed with the other blade, digging into the monk's side. Mort faltered in his dodge, and the first sword came down to slice his shoulder. The monk let out cry of pain but took hope to see Mythyria at last arrive at the top of the stairs. The wizardress released a spell as soon as Jakub was in her line of sight; the half-fiend cried in pain as crackling black energy ripple over his body. Mort seized the opportunity to press an advantage; he let fly a flurry of fists and feet too fast to follow with normal vision. Despite the enfeebling energy he had just suffered, Jakub managed to dodge the first blow and block two more. Then two kicks hit in rapid succession against the half-fiend's exposed side. His infernal resilience absorbed one blow, but the other connected solidly; Mort heard a telltale crack and was sure that a rib had broken. The monk smiled, as did Jakub; the half-fiend brought his swords back into an offensive position then cried in pain. Behind Jakub, Eriks' invisibility dispelled with a quick flash as his thinblade pierced both of Jakub's kidneys. The half-fiend roared in pain and unfurled his leathery bat-like wings. He takes to the air as Mort retreats to the stairway. Mythyria aims a fiery ray of arcane power at the fleeing Jakub and releases; the spell bounces off the half-fiend's skin like a small rock hitting a tree. Hekuba appears behind the elf and quickly fires a crossbow bolt at the flying target. The bolt is repelled in much the same manner as the spell and Jakub gains more altitude. Eriks, using the still active power in his boots flies in pursuit of his sister's bane but Jakub has a substantial lead and continues to gain the advantage of height; the villain casts a spell over himself while flying and a shimmer flashes over him. Mythyria, down to her less powerful spells, lets loose four more bolts of arcane energy. They are absorbed in Jakub's flesh and he makes no sign of slowing. Then, Hoppup appears, his hand aglow with built up magics he has been storing during his climb of the stairs. In much the same manner as Mythyria, the lizard wizard releases arcane bolts; instead of four however, twelve of the missiles appear and explode onto the fleeing Jakub. The half-fiend cries in pain and falters. Before he can regain control of his flight, Eriks is upon him. The rogue flies in close with his body horizontally aligned. With his off hand he grabs the still writhing Jakub by the shoulder, matching the rhythm of the beat of those leathery wings. Eriks brings his mouth to the ear of Jakub and whispers in a voice more sinister than he thought himself capable of. "This, is for my sister." The human drives his blade, its glowing holy energy piercing all defenses through the back of his foe. Jakub finches and reaches for a blade of his own, but Eriks is the quicker. The rogue pulls his blade free, then releasing his grip on his enemy's shoulder drives his blade through the back of his neck and out of Jakub's own mouth. A gurgle of blood and bile are the last sounds made as Jakub plummets fifty feet back onto the city wall. Karyan comes to the top of the stairs just as Jakub falls, and fires her bow at her own personal demon. If Eriks' blade, and the fall had not finished him, the ranger's shot surely would have. Still glowing with the holy energy Kamal had bestowed upon it, her arrow flew straight into the left eye of the falling fiend burying itself to the shaft and protruding out the creature's skull. The companions gathered around the fallen Jakub and stared for a moment. Karyan, with a fire of death itself in her eyes approached the broken creature with her sword drawn. Saying not a word and giving no regard for the half-fiend's modesty, she ripped away his breeches, lifted her sword high, and swung a huge downward arc; eliminating evidence of Jakub's masculinity. "Good Karyan, please..." Kamal was stopped short by Eriks. "She needs this priest, let her be." The ranger then kicked her severed prize away from its host and fell to her knees. With a scream born of terror and rising into a shout of victory she reversed the grip on her blade and drove the pommel into the flesh before. She continued this until all that was left before her was a dark red smear of flesh. None of the other companions felt it wise to disturb the ranger, so they quietly went to shedding Jakub of his equipment. "The bow, both blades, the scabbard, both rings, the cloak, the belt, the armor, and the necklace." Mythyria, using her ability to see unseen auras of magic reported the items worth inspecting further. Hekuba reached for the swords, but was cut short by Eriks. "Hold friend, you may not have seen, but at least one of these blades is filled with malice." The rogue closed his eyes and, in the same way Mythyria focuses on magic, attuned his vision to see the evidence of evil around himself. He opened his eyes and indicated the same sword that had hummed with vile energy before. "I'll hold on to this, we need to have it destroyed." Eriks announced to the group. Taking a winter blanket that had seen no use since arriving on the Isle of Dread, the human wrapped the blade and stowed it away. "Look!" Hoppup had moved to the edge of the wall, and when the others joined him, they could see what he spotted. Nythyians, dozens of them, presumably the villagers were emerging from small buildings all around and looking through the bodies left on the ground and up at the triumphant heroes. "Lets burn this body." Kamal indicated toward Jakub, "I do not wish him to ever return." The group agreed and as Hoppup and Mythyria began gathering magical fire Eriks stepped in front. "Hold a moment please." The Nythyian seemed just as content to let the fire dance around his hands, while Mythyria though clearly not singed by her own flame gave a rather annoyed look at the human. Eriks worked quickly, ruining a plain dagger, and sawed the right horn off of Jakub's lifeless head. "Proceed." the rogue said with a triumphant smile. The arcanists let loose their combined power and the body of Jakub was engulfed in short order. [/FONT] [/QUOTE]

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