Ioannes watched the Demon transform, taking in the potential use of his multiple arms and claws in this fight. Standing just beside Tirrarian, the Mamluk parried - or tried to parry - the arm swiping towards the Gnome, before thrusting at one of Zargon's left armpits. At the same time, though, he kept to the enemy's right side, allowing The Red, as well as his impressive Lioness summon, to keep attacking the Demon's front and left.

If he should succeed in piercing the Demon, or should he be struck by one of its blows, he would notice that either his attacks caused more damage, causing the Demon's wounds to fizz like acid, or that the pain from the hit was less. Either way, he would notice that there was magic afoot, from an allied spellcaster - a rarity in Waldenshore!

@The Harbinger of Ferocity, @Jon Y, @The Fated Fallen, @IcePezz, @ArenaSnow.

The Red, using the moment of opportunity wherein the demon fell upon his knee, seized it to unleash a grasping tear; both paws forepaws splayed wide, the attack of the demonic sword having trailed off as but a sweep to attempt to push them back, the wilderman hooked his claws down with tremendous force. The full assault not alone, having been launched from Zargon's weakest side - the point of poison - and in tandem with that of the Mamluk who thrust his blade in vengeance at the demon for attempting on the gnome's life, the barrage was undoubtedly reeling; the brunt of a hurricane. Exposed on the other flank now, the greater lioness leapt upon him as she would have any other of her prey, attempting to sink each clawed digit into his back and right to begin her rending.

Forced to withdraw from his attack to avoid Zargon's revenge - the sweeping blow leveled at Tirarrian - the orange and striped form bristled in menace, swiping low at the exposed right leg and attempting to draw the demon's ire instead by attempting to topple him; it was not that The Red did not trust the gnome could weather a strike, but in truth how many she could was not a thing he knew. The sword the demon bore was a mighty weapon, unfamiliar to him and no less diabolical than any other he had seen, but it was undoubtedly a deadly force in that it seemed to outright ignore armor and leave clean, cauterized wounds...

The attackers needed to hasten their assault - either to bring the tremendous foe and his enormous power down, which while credible was time consuming, or cripple and maim him so horribly here that whatever threat he did pose in the future should he escape was not nearly close to that he posed now.

The Red had a few approaches in mind, but it depended greatly upon if Zargon could physically withstand the current mixture of physical and supernatural threats.

@Letter Bee@Jon Y@The Fated Fallen@IcePezz@ArenaSnow

One demon fell as it's head was cut off, but the charmed mercenaries showed no fear, or any other emotions for that matter. Before his demon the demon shouted one order, an order that the mercenaries would mindlessly follow: "Kill them all!" Eve after it's death the remaining three mercenaries had their longswords out and chased after Regina. They would chase her and slash at her, and even if she used her knives to cut off their limbs they wouldn't so much as scream thanks to the enchantment put on them.

The other demon was getting quite annoyed at Sigfried's persistence and loathed to have to use so many spells so soon. But his survival depended on it. Before Sigfried could catch up to him the demon casted another spell which made it grow wings, allowing the creature to take flight. Still invisible the demon flew high into the air, at least fifty feet up before turning towards Sigfried. "Filthy mortal! You will burn in hell!" It shouted as it created a large fire ball in it's hand. Orchid would have tried to shoot it if she knew where it was at, because not only was the demon invisible to her, but also it's fire ball. Because she couldn't fight the invisible demon effectively, she instead fired two arrows at the charmed mercenaries chasing after Regina.

@Belwicket@KazeXDZ

Robert thought for a moment as he listened to her words. In all the time he had seen Isabeau she did not really look like much he had never seen her fight and had only seen her horrible attitude. However when he had looked into her eyes he saw something different , something not human. And then the strange words that women had spoken against her. About her being the princess of darkness. It had not felt right and to let her walk alone could cause problems if she indeed turned out to be evil. So he decided to join her for two reasons. The first was to see how much power she truly posses d and the second that if she indeed turned out to be evil. The he would be close enough to stab her in the back. with that idea in mind Robert said with the same emotionless voice as Isabeau.

" It might be a smart idea if i accompanied you to the mountain. It would hardly be fitting to leave a women alone in such dangerous times no? And if that doesn't convince you, look t it this way. Two fighters are always better than one." And with that Robert kept walking beside her. He still had no idea where they were going but apparently she knew so he decided to just trust her judgement.

[Conjoined post between Bel and I.]

"Dragons already burn!" He roared loud enough for his voice to echo at least a couple miles away as his skin turned dark pink, steam rising from it. "Dragon burst!" The air would seem to waver as the aura of his rage would fly towards the demon, leaving scorch marks in its wake. The attack left him feeling empty, though still raging. He turned to Orchid, his hair slowly turning a pale silver. "Fire there!" He yelled, pointing straight at the demon. "And don't relent." He coughed up a bit of blood before turning his sword to be able to launch the halfling. "Regina, sky shot!"

Regina had been running still when she saw arrows fly past her. "They're still alive!" She called to the half-Orc. Seeing Siegfried with his blade ready to launch her, she smiled. She leapt on the edge of his weapon, looking towards where she thought the demon was.

Siegfried launched Regina straight towards the demon, his aim perfect for if the demon did not move. Regina, however, would be able to smell the burnt flesh of the demon, whether it was still airborn or not, and be able to use her levitation to guide herself towards the demon if he did move. Either way, the halfling would end up on the demon's back, knives slashing at its neck. "Shoot there!" Siegfried yelled again, looking at Orchid.

Zargon couldn't have been surprised that the opposition attacked when he foolishly targeted that which he was unlikely to hit. What he had not expected was magic of multiple sorts attacking his weakened side, including varieties of magic that by sheer chance should not have even been present in Waeldeshore nor the entire isle, and he found his quick probing at mental barriers while he fought like a demon (pun intended) was met with protection spells not used for thousands of years. He severely underestimated the amount of magic present, and this was just half the enemy. The more concerning angelic threats hadn't even exposed themselves.

While he had difficulties compiling his thoughts mid combat, he came to realize that he would be unable to win at his current strength. He doubted he could even get a kill without exposing himself too much. He came to the somewhat scattered conclusion there would only be one course of action: feint a massive assault, and quickly escape, as he attempted to swipe at the Red's claws.

He set this makeshift plan born of two seconds into action by gathering the surrounding energy in the air into his sword, making it glow a deep purplish red, and attempting to draw power from anything present - in a way that would indicate a possible bad thing coming soon. At least, he hoped that would be how it was interpreted. If his enemy let up just a little, he could use the magic that was less potent than it seemed and use it for his real purpose... and hopefully their attacks wouldn't be further encouraged, a thought that was almost scattered as he was battered in the same spot multiple times. Concentration would be needed. Concentration he had in very short supply, as well as sustainability if he didn't start casting with the sword soon. He prepared the first part of his plan by focusing part of his concentration on a knockback maneuver.

---

Artholath strode through various city streets, noting the clouds above. He didn't need to do much to find the battle; he would only need to follow the noise, and the scent of magic being thrown about. He was near the battle, that much he knew. He still wasn't sure how he would know what <Just noticed this post cut off. Insert something clever in here as I forgot what was supposed to go in>

Ioannes prided himself on one of being the most skilled soldiers in the entire world - that was what the Mamluks were supposed to be. But his pride would be knocked back along with his body when Zargon made his feint - why? Because he would fall for it.

Getting up after being knocked back, the Mamluk swung again at the demon, taking his sword in two hands now. He noticed the magic now enfolding him; there was a reason why the knockback hurt less than expected. Even in the heat of battle, Ioannes made the process of elimination; none among them except The Red could have cast the spells, and the soldier was sure the man didn't care enough to protect them. So, that meant Genevieve - not that he knew her name, had cast the spell.

He also wasn't blind, he knew she was in a vulnerable position. But at the same time, he could not abandon the fight against the Demon!

Once he had finished his swing, Ioannes/Yahya said to Ionathan and the guards:

"Keep the Scholar safe while we deal with this!"

@The Harbinger of Ferocity, @Jon Y, @The Fated Fallen, @IcePezz, @ArenaSnow.

Orchid watched as the little halfing flung herself into the air. Orchid could guess from Sigfried's shouting that he was able to see the demon, which was helpful. As soon as she saw blood coming from the halfling's blades Orchid took out a big arrow, notching it and pulling it back. "Fall." Releasing her arrow it flew into the demon's skull, and thanks to Regina cutting at his neck, tore it's head off. The body's invisibility broke and he quickly fell to the ground. The enchantment on the surviving mercs dropped, though they would still feel the lingering effects for the next few minutes. But the injuries on them would put them out of commission and at the moment, were in no condition to give a good chase. Orchid saw no reason to waste more arrows on them and moved onward ahead of the others, still hidden in the forest.

Eventually Orchid found the second cave. No tracks leading to it, so hopefully the demons haven't found it yet. "Hmm.... Might be a tight fit in here." Orchid still had her bow out and snuck in without waiting for the others. She was just as good at hiding in caves as she was in the forest however, and as soon as she entered she was gone once again.

@KazeXDZ@Belwicket

Siegfried leapt into the air, catching Regina from the dead demon's back, landing heavily. He set Regina down before standing with a sigh. "She's already headed on." he said, sniffing the air. "Let's catch up. It'd be faster if you get on my back." Whether or not the halfling took the offer to carry her, Siegfried would begin running fast, following Orchid's scent to the cave, leaving more gashes in the trees he passed to allow others to follow. Once at the cave, he cut one of the smaller boulders in half, letting people know this was the correct cave, before stepping inside, his skin and hair glowing softly in the darkness. "We don't have much time before this wears off." he said, walking quickly and carefully. He would follow Orchid's scent, hoping to find her. It took some tracking and his glow faded long before, his body beginning to ache afterwards, but he did eventually find the half-orc. "A bit hasty, aren't we?" he asked, coming up behind her. "You couldn't wait, could you? Now, what are we looking for?" he asked, looking at Orchid and, if she was there, Regina. "I can sense the dragon." he said, frowning. "It's asleep for now."

Regina looked at Siegfried with a shrug. She quickly climbed on his back, watching the trees rush by as the man ran. When they got to the cave, she jumped off his back and closed her eyes, keeping her mind open to sense for others. Following Siegfried, she was surprised at how fast they found Orchid. Once they found Orchid, Siegfried asked what they were looking for. With a sigh, the halfling lifted herself from the ground and showed Siegfried the images she had seen from the strange woman's mind a few days prior. "That is all I know about it." she said softly, landing on the ground. "If we can find it without waking the dragon, that would be best." She nodded before heading towards the dragon quietly, hoping the dragon wouldn't wake up. She kept her eyes open, looking for the artifact. Eventually, she found it. However, getting to it would be difficult without waking the beast. She looked at Orchid and Siegfried with a tilt of her head and a shrug. She made her way back to the two taller beings before whispering, "I can't get to it without waking him. Too much gold in the way that would make too much sound." She looked back at the artifact with a sigh. "Orchid, do you have a thin rope you can tie to one of your arrows?" she asked, looking at one of the larger spikes above the artifact.

The guard were now finishing up, most of the bats had exhausted themselves on the guard and were either flying off or dying. He looked around at the guardsmen, a few cuts and battered shields but all were alive and kicking. "Keep the Scholar safe while we deal with this!" Ionathan looked round to see the Ioannes fighting the demon with the others, Ionathan understood that by attacking the demon with his guard it would only hinder the group and the Scholar was dangerously exposed to attacks, but he could see townsfolk in the buildings nearest to the demon Ionathan could not let the demon take them. "Guardsman, you have done well but there is still work to be done, search those buildings and get any townsfolk out of the there, do not get close to the demon or the fighters, keep your head down and get the civilians out!" with nods the guardsmen took off into the surrounding buildings closest to the fighting.

Ionathan now ran over to the scholar, he did not want to snap her from concentration so he just stood a few feet to her right and quickly checked his equipment. His shield was in a bad shape the bats did a good job in splintering the centre and his spear was also in bad shape with the leaf shaped spear point loose, soon he will have to draw his longsword which was his preferred weapon, given to him at the end of the war by General Stubbs himself, it had never seen combat and Ionathan would love for his blades first kill to be a demon but he had to do his duty and guard the scholar.

Ionathan went into a defensive stance, kept an eye on the surroundings and the other eye on the scholar.
@The Harbinger of Ferocity, @Letter Bee, @The Fated Fallen, @IcePezz, @ArenaSnow

Orchid heard Sigfried coming the moment he started attacking rocks at the entrance. She hoped he would be a bit more subtle, but at least he'd make a good distraction. "A bit loud aren't you? We're suppose to be quiet." When the halfing asked for some small rope, Orchid took out some silk rope. She had at a spoon worth fifty feet, but she wasn't certain what the little girl wanted with it. "That I do. But couldn't you use your magic or something to bring the object back? I noticed you used it to fly, couldn't you use it on the object to bring it to us?" As she asked that Orchid did tie her rope to the arrow.

@Belwicket@KazeXDZ

Regina saw the rope and nodded with a smile. "I could if I were close enough." she said, tilting her head. "Hence the rope. Just make sure you get the arrow stuck in there good. I don't want to fall on a sleeping dragon." She then looked up at Siegfried with a thoughtful expression before turning her gaze to Orchid. "Orchid, hold the rope. Siegfried, keep your ears open for anyone else coming in. We may not need the help unless the dragon wakes." Just then, the dragon moved. Regina spun and watched as the dragon rolled, two of its large claws landing on either side of the artifact. She sighed in relief before focusing, taking the chance to heal any wounds she could while waiting for Orchid to fire the arrow.

"But Gil." Lonmil whined. The gnome had been pestering the half-elf for the past hour about some food other than nuts and berries.

"Lonmil, do not make me-" Gil began, only to be cut off by the gnome.

"There's gashes in the trees!"

Gil glared at the gashes before stomping off wordlessly to follow them.

Lonmil followed after, asking many questions that neither of them had the answers to.

They eventually came to a cave with a small boulder sliced in half.

"Looks like whoever it was is inside the cave." Lonmil spoke rather loudly, his voice barely echoing clearly enough for Siegfried to hear.

Gil looked at his friend and shook his head before motioning him to be silent. He began entering the cave, using only sound and touch as guides in the darkness.

Lonmil, being able to hear even the smallest of the half-elf's sounds, followed silently.

It took a few minutes but the pair eventually reached the trio in the dragon's lair.

Lonmil was the first to speak. "Hello." he whispered, waving. He was a bit wary of the human and half-orc but had an immediate crush on the halfling, one he failed to hide.

Gil nodded a wordless greeting with a stoic expression and a look of curiosity.

"Assassinating a dragon?" the gnome smiled slyly, being just loud enough to be heard.

" It might be a smart idea if i accompanied you to the mountain. It would hardly be fitting to leave a women alone in such dangerous times no? And if that doesn't convince you, look t it this way. Two fighters are always better than one."

"hrm, sure. Suit yourself", she said to Robert with a smirk. "Be on your guard though, whatever they fought... there is evil about.", she glanced around as they hurried down the path, her gaze darting between the trees where the others had disappeared.

It wasn't very long before they reached the foot of the mountain, if any others had been following, they were as quiet as a mouse and as hidden as the wind. The terrain was becoming quite dangerous and the higher they climbed, the colder it became. Despite the sweat dripping down Isabeau's brow, she clenched her coat only tighter.

She thought she had seen movement ahead, but couldn't quite see who or what it was. They came to the second cave and Izzy knelt to inspect the various tracks that seemed to occupy the ground by the entrance. Her fingers glided over the many rocks, a smaller one specifically, that seemed to be cut in half by a sword.

"This seems to be the place. But I see no camp nearby, unless the scholar spoke of one inside. Either way, I'd gather from all that's present, our compatriots are already here or we can expect a battle once we enter. Prepare yourselves.", she said with an edge in her voice as she crept into the cave.

@RokkuHoshi @Belwicket @Lucius Cypher @KazeXDZ @boomlover @Dragoknighte

Durin had trailed behind the rest of the group as they traveled up to the mountain cave. Somebody needed to keep the rear and make sure some wild beast couldn't get the jump on everyone, but nothing really happened. It didn't seem like the other group caught up after running off into a fight half-cocked. Perhaps they got themselves killed. A shame, but it happens.

Speaking of running off half-cocked, half the remaining group ran off to fight a demon or something on the side of the road. If the circumstances were anything to go by, there really wasn't time to just get distracted and try to kill any random thing you come across on the side of the road. They seemed to have it handled though, so he kept moving.

This whole time, the elf healer stayed rather close by. Several times he tried talking her into going ahead to stay with the rest of the group, but each time she insisted that as a healer it would be irresponsible to leave a patient she was supposed to be watching alone in the wild, even if he was trying to keep watch alone.

After the swordsman and witch, Durin and the elf were the first subgroup to arrive at the mountain base. They quickly got the idea and stealthily caught up with the other two.

@IcePezz @RokkuHoshi @Belwicket @Lucius Cypher @KazeXDZ @boomlover

Siegfried sighed as he looked at the dragon. He found it strange that his scar wasn't hurting. "Just be careful." he said to Regina. "I don't want you falling on the dragon." He looked to his scar again before hearing a voice coming from the cave entrance. "Someone's coming. Someone I don't recognize." He looked back the way they had come from. "Two." He said, sniffing the air. "One of elvish decent, the other smells of alcohol. I would guess a dwarf. The pair eventually caught up with them. "A drunken gnome." He said to himself, hearing his whispered words. "We're not assassinating the dragon." He sighed. "We're trying to get an artifact it has to save the town a few days away." He then tapped the gnome's head. "You know it's not polite to stare." Not even a minute after the half-elf and gnome had caught up with them, he heard a couple more voices outside the cave. These two were not loud enough to be understood but he still knew they were there. "Wait here." He whispered to the group. "I'll be right back." He began walking back towards the cave entrance, running into Isabeau, Robert, the dwarf and the healer. Looking at the healer, he knew she would ask about his wounds. "They're already healed." He said to her, showing the places the wounds had been. "The halving is working with the half-Orc to get the artifact. And the group has a pair of new members; a half-elf and a gnome." With a motion of his hand for them to follow, he headed back towards the dragon. Except they took a wrong turn and ended up by another dragon. "That's not the same dragon." He said, clutching his curse mark in pain. "And this one is evil. We need to get back to the others." He moved past them quickly but quietly, hoping this dragon wouldn't wake or sense the curse. After correcting their course, he led them back to the group, frowning.

An audible clap of opposed energy snapped at the air as the demon's blade caught against the Essentia infused talons of the great tiger's paw; a visible cascade of ghostly blue and white sparks flung themselves wide across the air and faded into vapor just as briefly as they had sprung to life, leaving unnatural mist in their wake. The impact, a skillful parry by the aged fiend, was enough to spare him the worst of the viciousness inflicted upon him - an assault that was not relenting, not in the least. It was the follow through that caught "The Red" on to the move again, changing his angle of approach from a direct confrontation to the slightest chink in the enemy's defense.

The lioness, in all her rampant, snarling glory, proceeded to rake, tear and bite at every exposed inch of the demon's back; each strike shuddering with a faint amount of essence surrounding it as it inflicted true injury upon the attacked. It was at this time, the wicked blade darkening in a dim glow of magic, that the Red threw himself full force into Zargon's chest, with claws splayed wide and looking to wrench the demon to the ground - a tactic no different than those used by the beasts of the wild. With one fierce roar, hoping that the opportunity presented in brief by Ioannes would be enough, his mind bellowed with pitched fury.

"Kill or be killed, fiend!"

The longer Zargon had to do whatever it was his blade was doing, the only greater danger they surely would be in. If things went well, the monstrous being of evil would be pressed between two creatures set to wrestle him to the ground - if things went poorly, well, at least "The Red" reasoned he could survive his foe's revenge; the sheer closeness of the fighting made a sword's use difficult, but so too was Zargon armed with deadly ebon talons. This was much preferred though, given the circumstance.

It was a gamble to try to take him to the ground, but it was all that could be done in the throes of a bestial fury.

There was no time to set about a defense - the counter-attack was now. Waeldeshore had already failed to defend its leader, and any attempt to shield the scholar was foolish, likely suicidal. Or so "The Red" reasoned these things; they were expendable, but the demon before him, that which is Incarnum burned just as cleanly as the fire of the heavens or hell? This was the true thing that needed to be crippled, if not defeated; the demon's attack needed to be routed... or better yet, destroyed.

@ArenaSnow@Jon Y@Letter Bee@The Fated Fallen

There was a grumble and rumble as footsteps stirred in the dank dark cave. And there was certainly evil afoot. One eye opened, but just in time to see no one there. But he knew they were there, he could hear them, he could smell them. What he felt had tingles in his nose and made his mouth water. The very thought of human flesh being torn and shred to bits ... he could already taste them.

But he had to be extra careful. It was obvious they weren't the doe eyed tourists, just taking a walk. They were here to steal something, something of his. Filthy humans, think they can steal from me?!

@RokkuHoshi @Belwicket @Lucius Cypher @KazeXDZ @boomlover @Dragoknighte

Ok, Plan B. A shift in course was necessary when he was being beaten down by two beings that, by rights, shouldn't have made it this long at all.

Zargon didn't have one, of course, but he damn well should make one before he was pinned down by two enemies who were obviously trying to tank him out. He decided to focus not just power into his sword, but his essence as well - the procedure would be complicated, but not impossible.

He started to put his very essence in it, his hands leaking energy into the sword and making his body more physical and show more visible and slower regenerating damage as his regenerative ability went into the sword as well. He made up for it by swiping with every limb, focusing on The Red, but swishing some limbs at the lioness as well. His physical form would be torn to pieces quickly without his essence in it, something that his enemy would notice very quickly, but they still likely would not know what his next move would be, and that was what he counted on. He could let his physical form be destroyed and cast a human form spell later. If the lioness continued her assault the back end of his physical form would be destroyed in under 10 seconds after he started the process. He could finish the task in a short amount of time, but he would have to be able to have something left of his physical form to cast at full effectiveness.

His sword began pulsing with black and purple energy even as his body began to turn a grey color. The sword was extremely durable, but Zargon wondered if it was up for the task.

If not, well, the explosion would end the fight anyways.

---

Artholath stood at a street corner, looking down at the engagement. Zargon appeared to be doing an essence shift; he had seen one in the early years of his existence. But there wasn't time to ponder exactly what the shift was for. He looked at the engagement.

While the combatants were strong, he doubted they were the targets. As he looked into the clump of guards, he felt... something. A type of magic used that reminded him of the early days.

His eyes locked onto a woman at the back, making casting moves. He allowed his eyes to shift into a dark swirling blue so he could see more clearly.

That must be the one.

He had two options; wait for another time, when there weren't a dozen guards in the way, or barrage them now and have a chance at killing his target, even though pursuit was guaranteed and if she survived, the next time wouldn't be so easy.

He made his decision and shifted into demon form right on the street corner. As he flexed lengthening fingers, he concentrated on the creation of ice spikes of a specific flavor.

If he wasn't going to finish the job, he could at least get a good start.

He pointed every one of his now 12 fingers at the direction of the clump of guards with his prey, and began shooting spikes of ice at them. These weren't intended to be fatal... yet. Just knock some guards to the ground to let him get a better shot.