The Search For Mana

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

It wasn't very long when people from all directions seemed to start closing in on Ember and Lazaryos. Unlike previous battles, they weren't given the luxury of taking care of the enemies with a basic spell. Almost everyone there had equally powerful Majicka, faster than your average person, or had Magic-resistant armour. Lazaryos' lightning flashed brightly every time a spell or projectile came within a foot of them, signifying how much power was required to deflect those. Meanwhile, Lazaryos had to exert power enough to stop people from getting in close, so the net was very visible on all sides above the sand. Those with Magic-resistant armour almost came dangerously close, but enough power was exerted to fry people's skin/fur/scales to the point of fusing with the armour and causing insufferable pain that was enough to make them all pass out. Those whose faces touched the net directly died instantly from the electricity coursing through their brains.

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Ember used every spell she could think of to attack the people who weren't attacking them (since Lazaryos was the one on the defensive). She threw out large fireballs, fire boomerangs, did the flamethrower, and even brought up fire from beneath groups at an attempt to burn them alive. Some of her basic spells were used but in a larger magnitude to have more of an effect. As she walked, she had to duck or dodge every now and then when a spell or thrown weapon managed to get through Lazaryos' defense. She used some spells that the others had never seen her use before as she moved through the battlefield with a deadly grace.

[Chrono Blackwyng]

Chrono flipped Dante over by grabbing his forearms and throwing him back-first onto the sand. "You're wielding a cross made of metal and I've seen you deck bandits, start digging so we have a place to hide out in when the mages can't hold them off!" He put his foot on Dante's chest so he couldn't just squirm away until he released him. "The longer you stay out here, the more likely it will be that you get taken out by stray magicka. Now start digging!" Chrono took his foot off Dante's chest and kept his hand on his sword.

[Srgntcuddles]

"Weee!" Dante squealed as he flew over Chrono and onto the ground. He listened to Chrono yell and responded as he got up. "Alright, alright. Sheesh, so bossy. Don't come crying to me when you lose an eye, okay?" he said innocently. He walked over to assist Vosur in making their soon-to-be shelter more natural. He spread the dirt that was being tossed out of the hole around to give it the desired natural look. When he wasn't doing that he was picking at the wagon, taking chunks out of it to use as inner support for the shelter.

[Vosur Aekira]

He continued on the digging, getting the hole more than large enough to fit both Chrono and Lazaryos into it, but still not enough to fit everyone else into it yet. Every now and then, he'd take the support beams he would receive from Dante to make sure that the hole didn't collapse in on himself, also making sure that there was enough of a slope to allow himself to get out if he needed to in a hurry. Every now and then he would have to start pushing the loose sand out since he was digging deep into the dune. After about another ten minute's worth of digging, he would pop his head out of the hole and climb out, brushing himself off as he dropped the wood pieces he was using for shovels. "There."

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

Lazaryos began to wince a bit as his body began to feel extreme strain at maintaining so many spells, "This is as far as we go, I think! I'm getting close to my limit! Let's start heading back!" Since Lazaryos had to remain knelt to maintain the lightning net, he inched slowly backwards. Dammit. Of all the times to not have my staff. And there's nothing worth stealing either, he thought as he passed by a few dead bodies.

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Ember could feel her energy and magic levels being very low when Lazaryos called to her. With a nod of acknowledgment, she started moving backward, making her way back toward Lazaryos. Once she was next to him, she stayed at the same pace that he was going. There was no way she was just going to bolt for shelter and leave him there to fend for himself. Part of it was because she knew she couldn't get through this whole battle and everything without him, but there was another reason there. A reason that she shoved to the back of her mind.

[Chrono Blackwyng]

Chrono smiled at Vosur and Dante finished working, and he briefly turned around to cut down a normal that had now failed to stab him in the back. He turned back to Vosur just before he got out of the cave, and tossed him the short sword that the normal had once used. "Your reward is a back-up sword, as for the cleric... he just gets to live longer. Now get in the hole, I'll go fetch the mages..." He yelled before walking away from the hole and up a dune, and basically stood there so the mages would hopefully find the cave before Chrono would have to go and pull them out.

[Srgntcuddles]

Dante continued to passed pieces of wood to Vosur. That is until he had finished. When Chrono cut down someone who snuck up on him he went over to see if he was alive. He wasn't, leaving Dante to say a silent prayer for him. He didn't feel he should chastise Chrono for his actions, he seemed a little more angry and irritable. His carefree no killing attitude probably wouldn't bode well at the moment. At the same time he couldn't blame him, they were in an area of high stress. He stood up from the corpse and went over to Vosur. "So! Where's the hot tub?"

[Vosur Aekira]

He caught the sword and went over to the body to pick up the scabbard as well to attach it alongside with his own sword. "Thanks, but this sword has seen better days. What I wouldn't give for some tools to give it a proper temper." he muttered in out-loud thought. He put on his dark-glasses to get a better view of the area around them, grabbing up the food-bags and dropping them into the hole. "Padre, may want to get in the hole and keep your head down, we're going to need you to stay safe." he spoke, unbelting his own sword-and-sheath to be at the ready. "Chrono, you realize that there are plenty more where that guy came from, right?" He crouched down a bit to make his own profile less apparent in the black-sands, scooping some of it up and putting it in his white hair and tail-fur to make them blend in better. "You're going to need back-up." he spoke as he pursued after him.

[Shinzuu Katame: Her Tolfy]

Lazaryos grew weaker by the second and couldn't find out where the other three had run off to until he just spotted Vosur pilfering a body, "The group's just behind us and to the left! About 300 meters! Close your eyes and ears, I'm going to flash our escape, but I'm afraid it's going to cost the rest of my Majicka for an effective one, so I might pass out before we get there!" The net on the ground receded and then went up Lazaryos' body and around his hands. With a clap of his hands aimed forward, the lightning caused a loud bang and a blinding flash that incapacitated everyone in front of it within 800 meters. Lazaryos quickly turned tail and ran back, pulling Ember with him.

[Vee Katame: His Wolfy]

Ember had looked behind them a spotted Vosur when Lazaryos spoke. Not needing any more warning than that, she closed her eyes and put her hands over her ears. Even with the coverage though, the bang was still loud. Before she could open her eyes, Lazaryos pulled her. Her eyes opened quickly after than as she stumbled for a few steps before regaining her footing and running with Lazaryos for the shelter. She kept an eye on Lazaryos in her peripheral vision just in case he passed out so that she'd notice and be able to stop to help get him to the shelter.

[Chrono Blackwyng]

Chrono unsheathed his sword and twirled it in his hand while keeping an eye on the two mages. "The only people who need back-up are already heading towards the hideout. If you want to play decoy with me, then by all means." Chrono made his way down the dune and started going towards the two running mages.

[Srgntcuddles]

Dante shrugged and went in the hideout. Inside he found a corner to get snug in and kicked back to relax having nothing else to do. He waited for he others to show up, idly etching things into the walls. First he played tic-tac-toe with himself, after losing he moved on to drawing various stick figures. After he grew bored of that he started to make a sand castle. "It's dark in here. Too bad miss hot 'n' spicy wasn't here, we could use a torch." he mused with himself, alone.

[Vosur Aekira]

He had raised his dark glasses just in time to prevent getting blinded from Lazaryos's spell, the tint of them allowed him to not suffer quite as badly as his targets, but he still had to pause for a moment and blinked before he went in to start taking out the warriors pursuing Lazaryos and Ember from the left side, leaving the ones that were directly behind them for Chrono to take out. "Tell you what, if we make it through this whole ordeal... I'll make you a decent set of armor and pair of swords." he called out towards Chrono while he fought off the warriors closer to himself, mainly using his sheath as a melee weapon to knock them out and using his sword to block the strikes.