The archers wasted no time, the one on the right knocked an arrow as the one on the left drew a short sword and advanced. [i]And here they come...[/i] Melvus drew his straight sword then twisted his body to avoid the first arrow. Bringing up his sword horizontally he blocked downward slash from his opponent. He took note of the archer reloading while he stood, sword holding the enemy's blade, in between the two. As the archer took his shot, Melvus wasn't there anymore and the other man stumbled forward as Melvus' sword disappeared and an arrow lodged itself in his gut. 

The wizard didn't have time to notice the dolops of blood soaking the ground as his opponent fell to the ground, in what was now a puddle of his own blood, the scarlet liquid changing the color of the dirt. Melvus was in a hurry. [i]Six seconds left... I need to get into position...[/i] He though as he maneuvered himself closer to his enemy, knowing that there was no way the archer would notice him. [i]Three...[/i] He was within reach of the archer. [i]Two...[/i] Now behind the archer. [i]One[/i] He raised his sword and lunged forward as he rematerialized, lodging his blade into his opponent's back. That's what the plan was anyway. 

As the blade appeared behind him the archer dropped to the ground, twisting around on the way down. As his back touched the dirt on the ground his right foot shot upward striking the wizard's hand, knocking the blade from his grasp.

Melvus jumped back as his blade clattered to the ground, he'd lost sight of the archer. [i]Where..?[/i] His gaze quickly shifted from left to right as he realized [i]Down...[/i] He looked down in time to see the fist. As his back slammed into the ground beneath him, his hand shot forward and an arm sprung forth. The archer, now on his feet, sidestepped around the glowing appendage and fired an arrow at Melvus who caught it in his left hand, effectively knocking his staff to the ground. The spellcasters reached over with his right hand and, painfully, ripped the arrow from him. As it exited it took chunks of his palm with it, spraying blood over Melvus. The glowing arm shrunk and moved closer as it picked up his staff. 

Replacing the staff on the wizard's back, many swords appeared around him, they revolved and whirled at great speed. The archer's next few arrows were swatted away. Realizing that it was a futile effort, also having noticed his comrades falling around him - the archer attempted to retreat back into the fog. As he reached the edge, he was shoved to the ground by a rather large horse, one of the beats large hooves crushing his head, killing him instantly.

"You! Bastard!" Came the voice of the rider, clearly not concerned that he just killed one of his own men. 

"Ah... Slaver, I told you not to return..." Melvus said as he drew his sword in his right hand, ready for a fight.

"Dammed wizard! Think you can best me!" The man jumped from his horse, landing in front of Melvus, his sword drawn. Melvus unsummoned his swords, leaving him with the one. The man lunged.

Melvus sidestepped then pivoted, facing the man again, his sword held in a Mid-guard position. [i]"You are the calm eye of the storm as your opponents rage around you..."[/i] his friend and teacher's voice, Cylus, came into his head. [i]"Let their power work for you..."[/i] 

"You can't avoid me forever!" The slaver yelled at Melvus as he swung his sword at Melvus' right side. 

The wizard brought his sword up and swept his opponent's away then returned to a guard position. "Why do you torment this town?" Melvus asked the slaver, his expression not changing as he ducked, avoided, and blocked.

"Do you know what profit is boy? I do it for the fuckin' gold! Now have at me dammit! I want to see what you're made of!" He stabbed at Melvus' center.

The wizard swept the sword away, using the sweep to power his own attack. He brought his sword around and cut into the man's right leg. Nothing major, it would hinder his movements but the battle wasn't decided yet. "You see the world in such simple terms as power and profit... I envy your ignorance."

"Dammit!" The slaver yelled out of frustration. He reached into his pocket and pulled a scroll out. "Let's see how you handle this!"

[i]A magic scroll... Can't allow him to use it...[/i] Melvus became invisible. [i]I can only keep this up for a moment...[/i] He could tell he was weak... his spell wouldn't last as long as it usually would. He ran forward. 

"Where?" Is what the man said as a wizard materialized in front of his, grabbing the scroll from his hands. His first reaction was, stab. And that's just what he did. 

As Melvus took a sword in his gut he remembered what Cylus had told him many times, [i]"Do not rush your opponent without a plan... They have a weapon and will not hesitate...[/i] Melvus silently cursed himself as he reached forward, grabbing the slaver's sword he pulled it toward him, he could feel the point against his back, not yet piercing him, but it pushed against his skin, threatening to break through.

"Gods!" The slaver yelled as he let go at the sight of the man pulling the sword into himself more, blood pouring into the ground. He looked as though he would hurl. The wizard winced at the pain. [i]I have him...[/I] 

From Melvus' hand shot a larger, glowing hand which grabbed the man and brought him closer to Melvus. "Pain means nothing to me... I have suffered a thousand deaths before you have met your on-" The slaver spat on Melvus' as he spoke. "And I will suffer more after your own death." With that the wizard ran his through, several times until the man's screaming died down and his eyes rolled back and his head hung, limp.


==============

Melvus was grateful for the food, he couldn't seem to speak as he ate. Afterward he made his way to the room, provided by the inn. He had given his cloak over to a wash lady to be cleaned of all of the blood spilled on it. Hopefully the smell would, be gone, but he couldn't get everything. He fell asleep almost immediately as his head touched the pillow. Nearly two days without sped cent sleep will do that.