Against the Night

[tangletail]

Neshar felt a wave of… something sift through his body when he felt the blade connect with the man’s arm. He pulled the blade back, grinding deeper into the flesh as he watched the shield finally drop out of his hands. After that, he felt a more familiar feeling surge through him. It seems like that the magic from his childhood curse was returning.
 
The thief soon hefted the weapon up, and dropped it onto his shoulder, though he frowned under his mask when Mort snapped at him. Well of course the large bully wouldn’t appreciate the fact that he just reduced a major problem to something smaller. The feline was about to make a retort, though he found himself taken aback by the Captains resolve. His eyes quickly looked down at the injured arm then back to the captain.
 
 “Wait… hold on. Pointless? You’re bleeding to death and your arm’s almost amputated there, guy…”. Though… it seems that the only response Neshar would get would be a sudden violent torrent of blood and brain matter spraying into the air. Which Neshar instinctively recoiled at by reflex to cover his already masked face. It didn’t prevent him from coating him in it… or any more as Mort just… had a field day with the man… turning him into a disgusting beef stroganoff. The feline might have a -small-instinctual and reinforced excitement for inflicting pain, but even this level of violence perplexed him.
 
“R…right…” The feline murmured… looking down to the bully. His eyes sifted over him for a moment, the feline… unfortunately unable to determine the other’s physical… or mental health. “Just… don’t kill the two survivors. I’d like to ask them some questions about their faction’s motivation. I’m…. going to go get Xavier. Have fun with… this.”
 
 With that… the feline quicky turned around… the recent events made him completely forget about the surviving mages as he walked near drake, and stopped. He crouched down after noticing the blood on his leg, and took a look over it. He quirked his brow as he noticed drips running sporadically up the body… to the hand… and there he saw the dagger. Neshar let out an annoyed sign and immediately covered his mask with a palm. “Next time… leave the damned thing in if you can’t stop the bleeding. Or you’ll bleed out before someone who can gets to you.” After giving the male a bonk on the head for his idiocy, he quickly went to work on some first aid. Just some application of a herbal salve on a cloth pad and tightly bandaging the leg.
 
After that the feline was back on his feet and jogging off to the forest. Once he arrived at the grotto where he left Xavier with a questionable ally, the first thing he did was check around for any signs of a struggle before looking down to the two. “Good news. The fight’s over. Are you well enough to walk back? Or would you like to ride the cat’s back?”
 
 Of course that statement could be pretty vague. Either the displacer or the thief.

[Cyril]

"Die alone, then." The jackal's apathetic looked turned towards a look of anger and disgust as the new character had called him a necromancer. The degradation of his magic was enough to make his blood boil, and for a split second he pounded his fists upon the ground angrily; using his magic to seek out the mage who had just insulted not only his magic, but his dignity. The area around him would then darken slightly, material appearing before the jackal released it; allowing it to fade back with small flashes of light. He stopped there, although heavily tempted to kill those who opposed him as he'd been taught to. He grit his teeth and lashed to the side angrily, his magic clear from the ally for the time being. Feeling his magic was now much stronger, he looked to the commander's previous spot, gritting his teeth into an abrasive grin. He approached slowly, still stumbling against the grass while he grunted. "Balance is not necromancy. Equilibrium must be maintained." He mumbled to himself, phased and frustrated before reforming his clawed gauntlets.


"Destroy the shield." He spoke rather clearly, his eyes to the bully as his cloak materialized on his shoulders. He cracked his neck and his knuckles, attention towards Mort mainly as he prepared to treat his wounds. His hands briefly vanished into darkness before some cloth appeared on it, and he neared him to wrap the wounds before healing them. He grasped his head in exhaustion, "And somebody better talk all nice to that stranger before I communicate to him physically." He growled angrily, the binds around the mages disappearing briefly after that comment. Juiced but exhausted, the jackal began to wrap at the bully's wounds and awaited the return of Xavier. "I need a drink," he panted exhausted before remembering that the previous scene had ruined the chance of returning to the town. He clicked his tongue angrily, his brow furrowed and his young gaze filled with it. Quiet and frustrated, he punched a wall with his gauntlet, gasping in pain and shaking it off before they faded back into the light used to create them. He looked at his fists to see bruises and angrily crossed his arms.

[Drakeyboy]

Drake would be partly shocked at Mort's outburst. How someone could savagely do something like that... wait... that commander probably was going to do it to him. But now that the shield wasn't being held he could feel the mana flow properly around him giving a mana blast to the surviving mages. Knocking them to the ground or making them scatter for them trying to dodge the blasts the shots clearly going around everyone, so the twin tailed fox could easily finish them. Ah that felt good after that horrible accident. He was going to begin patching up his wound with his magic but Neshar began patching him up before he could object or even say anything. As Neshar was in the middle of the treatment all he said in retort to Neshar's assumption was. "I was going to toss this at the commander..." he'd then lazily toss the dagger to the side. "Seems like that was a great idea. Also i do have a little healing magic so i wasn't worried about bleeding out."

Wether Neshar replied to him or not it didn't matter. He got up and limped over to the commander. He wanted to study the enchantment on that shield. If he could harness that power as a spell that would be a great upgrade to his barrier spell. and good thing he came when he did too. Hearing the Jackal threaten the shield Drake would quickly speak up. "Woah woah woah, no nead to be so hasty. I can probably figure out a way to turn that into a spell, or make it safer for the group... or both! No need to break it, it's inert when not carried so we're fine." He'd then pick up the shield with his telekinesis figuring the discussion is already over.

[Xavier Akafur]

Xavier still sat against the tree where he had been propped up, in much the same condition as he had been left in. Not much time had passed, but there was a clarity to the way he looked around that betrayed exactly how much he had recovered in that short time. His physical strength was still lacking, but at least he had gathered his wits. When Neshar spoke the hybrid just dipped his head. "I doubt you would have returned if we still had a fight on our hands." The otter-wolf replied, eyes straying over to the displacer beast that was still standing guard.


"Time is still an issue, but I can walk." He responded after a pause, pushing himself up to his feet. The colorful coat was already in the process of repairing the damage that had been done to it, the fabric magically mending itself over the hole burned through the back. Xavier, for his part, managed to stand without swaying, though it clearly cost some effort to do so. He began to walk, with as much haste as he could muster, back towards the sound of battle. He cast Neshar a sideways glance as a resounding boom echoed through the forest.


"I think you missed a couple." Xavier said, smirking. "Is everyone alive?" He questioned, carefully watching the feline's expression as he did so.


----


The few remaining mages, scattered and leaderless, mostly fled back the way they had come from. The few that stayed were quickly undone by the combined magic of Drake and the kitsune, certainly unable to withstand what the might of their entire squadron could not.

Xavier and Neshar returned to the main group just as the last of them fell, the hybrid looking around at the scene curiously. The mangled corpse and the dozens of bodies laying around speaking more about what occurred than what words could convey in such a short period. Having already been informed by the thief, the otter-wolf wasted no time asking anyway.


"Glad to see everyone in one piece." He spoke up, nodding his head towards the distant forest. "Unless anyone objects, we should carry on, and swiftly. This force they sent against us was most likely diversionary. They were meant to stall us long enough for whomever is in charge to access the artifact ahead of us." His eyes find the magical shield floating near Drake, then shift to the fox-coon himself. "Do not bring that infernal thing with us. If you must have it, bury it here and we will return for it. If somehow it was wrested from your control and activated again it could quite easily be used against us, to great effect."


Xavier did not feel entirely comfortable disclosing the fact that magic-eating items such as that could quite literally suck the life out of him. He would keep that fatal weakness to himself. He looks over to Camille, who was lingering near the edge of the group, and clearly unhappy about something. "Do you have any energy to spare?" He asked, and his haggard appearance left no question as to why he asked, the hybrid still looking.... off. The best way to describe it was if somebody had dipped him in ashes, dulling and graying his usually vibrant appearance. He seemed so much more mundane, mortal; the overflowing character and powerful presence of the hybrid diminished to a mere man, standing among a gathering of titans, and barely standing at that.

[AJ Fawxe]

The fox paused for a moment as he felt something about him and quickly turned, but saw nothing. Micah knew he felt something and could only suspect it was an incomplete spell. 'Could that jackal have actually considered trying something? I'm going to need to keep a close eye on him. I hope I'm wrong, though..' Turning back to the remaining mages he watched as some of the fleeing men were swept over with a wave of magic. The foxes face twisted into a scowl. Attacked, accused, insulted, possibly targeted for an attack by someone he tried to help. The foxes magic continued to siphon from his mental powers into his strength and he charged in.


Channeling all his frustration he went after the nearest remaining mages as they tried to climb back to their feet and escape. CRACK! The kitsune's staff connected with a skull and sent a surge of psychic magic through it, creating an aftershock of pain as he moved on to the next mage. The mage continued striking at the downed enemies until the last few made for a hasty escape. Striking one last opponent just barely within reach he stopped to switch back to his psychic magic.


"Oh no you don't.." the fox muttered as he struck a straggler with a surge of psychic feedback, scrambling his senses. Picking out another straggler his eyes burned bright as he viciously invaded his mind. Using the weight of his own psyche he sought to tear his mind asunder causing sudden injuries to manifest in his mind and body. Letting the second mage drop he turned back to the one he had stunned and clutched his amulet. "Stay there, or I swear I will blast your skull to pieces." The psychic didn't have the spell floating around in his head at the moment, but he had done it before and would have to remember to draw it out of his memory another time. All the same, it was unlikely that this weakened mage would try to call him out on his bluff.


Whistling softly a ten foot length or rope slid out of his haversack and wrapped around the other mages arms and torso then knotted itself. With a quick jab to his back the psychic sent the man falling forward onto his face then sat down. All the spirit energy he'd spent had taken it's toll. If the fox had been ready for this he'd have handled himself better, but already he could feel himself drifting a bit. Reaching into his cloak he pulled out what looked like a prayer slip, but it was made of silver. Micah set his staff down across his lap and held the Ofuda in both paws and began muttering softly to himself in a quiet prayer.

[tangletail]

The thief sniffed softly as the displacer beast tailed the two. He wondered if he should go ahead and dismiss it… or if he should hold onto it. But… he finally made up his mind when they got into the clearing. Tension was high, and trust was pretty borderline with this group it seems. Keeping an evil creature nearby would definitely raise an alarm. And so without a due, Neshar gave the creature a pat on the shoulder and gave him leave.
 
“Missed a couple? Well we did some prisoner capturing amongst the beheading,” The feline hummed softly as he lowered the great sword, and adjusted his grip so he was holding it in one hand by the blade. He then tilted it back so it was now resting on his shoulder with the hilt past his head.
 
“Which brings up two questions. The first is with time being fairly critical, do you want to take the chance to question the ones we have captured. Or should we just push on like buffalo soldiers?” The feline asked. The feline also took a moment to stop, and grab the half dead assassin who took a blow to the skull by the collar and dragged him along.
 
The second question that came up was spoken softly in a hush hush way. The thief didn’t even bother to turn and look to the man. “And are you mortal? Last I checked, you shrugged off wounds that could put any one out of commission, and it wasn’t till that shield came up did you look like you were at death’s door step. That… is a detail worth knowing if you didn’t wish to rely on pure luck of me noticing your condition.”

[Drakeyboy]

Drake would hear Xavier speak about the shield as it came within reach for him. He made a very valid point. And to even tweak the shield to make it so the spells that touch the shield would be the only one's affected would take too much time. Something that they didn't have. Without a word he would begin to look around for a place to hide the shield. He would quickly settle to hide it under a nearby bush using his telekinesis spell to simply cut through the dirt to hide it. And just to remember which bush it was he'd snap a twig on the outside of the bush that was noticeable if you were looking. He'd even make a very quick scribble in his note book of the location. Nothing else to do but take it when they finished with the temple.

[Cyril]

Camille wrapped Mort's wounds and tightened the synthetic fabric around them after approaching the bully. He then kneeled by the form of the once deadly commander. A gently stroke of the head, and the jackal squinted down. Ready to leech whatever he could for obvious purposes, though he waited. His team was likely to examine him, and the withering of his magic would definitely ruin quite a few of the clues they could get off of his body. He stood and then was drawn by Xavier's statement. Slowly approaching, he took each step with a scowl across his face. His bloodied robes and physical exhaustion was reason enough, though he continued to rest a hand on the other's shoulder.

The energy was familiar, and the link between the two was reformed. "I will return you to a previous state." He grumbled lowly at the otter hybrid, a physical pain filling the creature's form as his magic was restored slowly but surely. The jackal grit his teeth and wavered his own stance. His head down, though he continued. For a moment, the hybrid could feel the trace of Camille's memories; a flavor of malice and another of residual fear, replaced by wrath. The link was broken after they were felt, with the jackal releasing the hybrid to his previous glow and his beads to a dimmer color. Healing Xavier was definitely something that took much more effort than their more mortal accomplices. He met dark eyes with the other before looking away sharply from the trio formed by the thief and them. He grumbled, "We're still short a new fellow. And you're going to need to talk to him before our.. Tongues lash again." He spoke to Xavier, dark gaze still away for a moment before meeting them once more. "Given how he entered, I'm not too sure we can trust him. So I'll leave your lives to yourselves.. Just waste it." He looked to Neshar afterwords to acknowledge his presence, cracking his neck slightly and braiding his hair while the others regrouped and he stayed quiet.

[Xavier Akafur]

"If any are awake, we should question them, quickly. If not, I think it would be best not to waste time." He replied, though his focus was clearly more on the second question.


Xavier smiled absently at the thief, an expression clearly meant to mask the fact that he was thinking over the question more than he cared to clue in the thief. Under normal circumstances it might have been effectively disarming, but now it was unconvincing at best. "In the sense that I can die, certainly, I am mortal." He replied after a time, his smile dropping to a more serious and honest expression. "I exist here in the material plane, and I am flesh and blood.... in part." The otter-wolf pushed his coat aside slightly, revealing the thin scar that ran along his chest. It looked to be from a thin blade, and the width suggested he had been skewered upon the blade. "This is from one of the few times I let my guard down around somebody I thought I could trust. It would have killed a normal man, and came near to killing even me." He let his coat fall back into place, smoothing down the fabric with a paw. "I am unsure of what I am, in truth. My body is corporeal, but also seems to be unnaturally created by some sort of magic. Advanced alchemy has been my best hypothesis to date, though no records exist of anything that could create a sentient creature of my particular make."


He shrugged. "All in all it just means I'm a little more durable... but I am adversely affected by items such as that shield. I think I require some level of arcane energy to function, I feel as frail as an old man without it."


----


Xavier nodded his thanks to the jackal as he placed his paw on his shoulder, feeling the energy flow through the touch and into his being. It was not a pleasant sensation, but through the pain Xavier could feel his strength returning. His jaw clenched, though he made no sound, the newly revitalized muscles tensing under the sudden strain of the transfer. He let out a soft huff as the emotions surged through his psyche, his eyes catching the mage's briefly before the other looked away. The touch broke and Xavier's body relaxed, both his color and his strength restored. He offered the man a warm smile, one that he was almost certain would not be returned. Camille had always struck him as a black sheep, but that glimpse into his soul had revealed he may harbor a more personal darkness. Something Xavier resolved to inquire about at a later time.


"I will go speak to him. Anyone that wishes to join me may do so freely, of course, but if anyone can coax some information out of these... zealots... it could come in handy. I doubt that they thought such a small force would entirely stop our progress." He glanced at the dead commander, eyes narrowing slightly. "Though it seems a waste to use a warrior of that skill as a mere distraction." He turned slowly and began making his way towards the fox who was still in view some ways away, having moved into what appeared to be a meditative position on the grass. As the hybrid approached, he made sure to step on a few twigs as he neared, stopping several yards away.


"Thank you for your assistance." He greeted, having seen the fox doing battle against the red-clad militia for a short period during the fray.

[AJ Fawxe]

The fox was sitting there quietly, it seemed like they had spent quite a bit of time discussing things while the fox sat alone. As he was nearing the end of his prayer his ears twitched to the sound of a twig snapping and the hybrid's thanks. Micah paused mid sentence, then continued without opening his eyes. The prayer continued for about half a moment before he took a deep breath and seemed to relax. His aura resumed a bit of it's holy energy, though it was still a bit weak.


"Thank you for kindness. I know there is at least one amongst you who cares not for my life." The fox opened his eyes and they flickered for a moment as he got up to his feet. "I suppose you're the leader of this group. That's very well, as I can appreciate a level head, no offense to the rest of you," the fox added on looking to the others. "I feel like we may have more than a thing or two in common, good sir. I also live a very unusual existence." The fox looked at him with a knowing look and smiled softly before turning to the fallen enemies. The corner of his lips twitched into a frown and he sighed sorrowfully, "I shouldn't have killed them like that. What a shame.. I suppose there's nothing to be done now." Turning back to the group he seemed to have almost forgotten them in his moment of regret. "I'm here looking for something. I don't know if you were hired to fight these lot or if your reasons are your own. Perhaps we're both looking for the same thing?"


The fox leaned forward against his staff which seemed to be rooted upright where he'd stuck it. A minor telekinetic trick.

[Cyril]

"It also takes a bit more work to put you back together than the rest of us." Camille grumbled lowly, cracking his neck slightly and turning quiet once more as the fox reentered. He sighed and began to put his hair back in his normal braids, ears perked and the jackal not letting a single one go unmissed. He left a trail of wilted weeds and grass beneath his feet and cloak while he moved, using his newborn tactic to restore what little energy he could and constantly heal over the wounds he had suffered. In small amounts over time, of course. The canine approached the fox, figuring if he laid another hand on his foes he would probably just end them before information could be gained.

His anger momentarily quelled, he kept a rather blank expression while looming behind the hybrid. He allowed the newest member of the group to finish before retorting, and even kept the tone rather mild. "Given the grave insult, no pun intended, I restrained myself quite well." He stood forward upon speaking. "It's not a world of sunshine, and if I really didn't care for your life, I would've just laid you to premature rest when my anger had the best of me. If you didn't kill these men, they definitely would have done so to you. It's just the real part of the battle field." He looked to Xavier to allow him to do more of the talking, lest his own hot head get to him. The jackal clicked his tongue, eyeing over the hybrid once more. Further trying to understand how life flowed through him and why it took so much more energy to restore said flow compared to others.

[tangletail]

The thief rolled his eyes at the mention of trust. Surely, a man like this feline would rather not hear of anyone’s experience of betrayal. In the underground, there was always a high chance of betrayal, and something you’d expect. Even if it was from a friend you could call a brother. It was always business, rarely anything personal. But still, that’s what made the thief so odd. He never lied. He with-held the truth yes, but he never lies. And he sticks by his honor and word.
 
 “Well seeing that we are sharing secrets now. Perhaps I’ll start by mentioning that I was… no… that’s bad grammar… am a soldier. And had been for quite some time, and under orders both for honor and by status,” The feline said as he tugged at his clothes neck line to reveal the collar, which held all the information of who he belonged to… and where he was from. “To investigate and handle the scene at hand. An order I’m afraid I will have to even if it means the end of me.”
 
 
 The feline’s gaze then dipped down to one of the injured assailents, who was lying on the ground trying to crawl away. The feline shrugged lightly and planted his foot on the back of the cowering man’s head. “Oh no no no… you and I need to have a chat~” The feline hummed softly. There was a thin smile on his lips as he leaned down to pluck the man up and… drag him off.
 
“Stop struggling. Come on. I’m not going to torture you. Not going to kill you. Just gonna talk.” The feline's tone was oddly pleasant, and  the way he said it was just... off handed.

[Drakeyboy]

Drake would be looking around the battle field as this discussion continued on. He'd greet the newcomer as well in time, but amongst several others in chat he'd get a little lost especially from the current sounds from it. He'd wouldn't want them to completely retell the conversation for his sake. But he would be listening carefully nonetheless. Not wanting to be left out entirely. Because of this he'd catch Neshar talk about his... service, And the tension between the Camille and the new fox.

As he quietly listened he would examine the rest of the equipment from the fallen for useful enchantments or spells which could be used for later purposes. Even trinkets or materials to be used for enchantments. It's always good to look around. 

[Xavier Akafur]

The hybrid listened with polite attentiveness as the vulpine spoke, his eyes carefully training on his movements. He was relatively certain that they were on the same side, but he had not survived the battles he had by being naive. As the man spoke he slowly rolled his shoulders and neck as well, working the stiffness from his healing body. He seemed to be catching the worst of the injuries the last few battles, but that was nothing new, and probably better for him to soak up that level of damage than any of the rest of them.... aside from Mort, perhaps.


A sly smile crept over his lips as the fox finished speaking and Camille spoke up, something Micah could see and the jackal could not. He had already known that the jackal had a hard time healing him, but hearing him grumble about it seemed to amuse him. "In any case, I'm sure there will be another battle ahead of us. You fight well and your abilities are of a type I do not often come across. If you're bound to be in this scenario I would much rather you be with us than against us...?" The statement was phrased almost like a question, the hybrid holding out a welcoming paw.


As he extended this gesture the earth beneath there feet rumbled slightly, drawing Xavier's eyes up across the forest. The rumbling subsided quickly, and no visible sign of what had just transpired appeared. The hybrid's expression darkened slightly, his brows lowering for a brief moment. "I think we had best hurry."

[AJ Fawxe]

The fox arched his brows a bit and worked the tension out of his own muscles, mirroring the hybrid. Micah bowed his head and let his headfur hide the sly smile he exchanged with Xavier. It seemed they both took a little joy in this strange jackal's complaints. Evening out his expression he raised his head and considered the jackal's words then nodded his approval. "You are absolutely right. If I hadn't killed those enemies, they would have killed me. However, if I hadn't stuck around, they might very well have killed you." The fox arched a brow to him then shrugged, "It's just the real part of the battlefield. I won't go boasting about my abilities to slay you. I really don't feel it's the gentlemanly thing to do, given that we are supposed to be on the same side. We both have our advantages, to be sure. I do believe this isn't the kind of mystery that needs to be answered, though."

Shrugging as he stood and unfixed his staff from it's spot he went to shake the hybrid's hand then paused as he felt the rumbling. Looking around, he slipped his goggles down, though he wasn't sure if he'd be able to see anything past the haze of magic that was undoubtedly hanging in the air. "Seems there's no rest for the wicked. Guess that means we don't get much time to catch our breath either. I have enough energy to go on, though not as much as I'd like to. We may want to head back to town after we deal with this disturbance."