Behind his mask Malkai simply rolled his eyes at Catarina's rant. He cared very little for the plight of the magically-deficient. While he could respect her desire for preparation, her panicking will only get her and everyone else killed. [color=00a651]"If you're ready then, let's be off."[/color] Malkai took a few steps away from the others and transformed into a large elephant. Unlike the mammoth he took the form of inside the temple, this elephant was better suited for desert environments. Thick leathery skin to ward off sand and heat, large ears to provide shade, and lots of fat to give himself energy to trek for miles unending. Unfortunately this elephant form lacked the massive and deadly tusks of a mammoth, though he did have a respectable set of ivory in the event they get caught in a fight. Not to mention the other spells and abilities Malkai had in store.

As usual, the only thing that made it obvious that Malkai was not merely an animal was his mask; it looked much like how it was when he was a mammoth, enlarged and warped to fit his new face. It still covered his eyes and the side of his head, leaving his jaw and trunk exposed. He lowered himself down to the ground for the others to ride on his back. It wasn't the most comfortable area since it lacked a proper harness of any sort, but as long as they don't squirm they should be able to stay on. Once everyone was on his back Malkai proceeded towards the city of Saphire. It was going to be a long trek, but he was confident that they would make it within one, maybe two days.

[hr]

Yet another fine woman arrived to greet Veridis and the others, introducing herself with crossbow bolts. Where Veridis tried to intimidate the others through possible harm they may come to if they fought him and the warrior from the north, the woman, who Veridis pegged as an inquisitor, went straight into shooting. She killed four of the rogues in a single volley of bolts, leaving the others five in front to Veridis and the warrior woman. The woman whom by the way pulverized the skull of one unwary thief, smashed the kneecap of another, and charged towards the large half-orc with a scimitar.

The other three were about to chase after the woman to flank her with their leader, but Veridis stopped them with a flourish of his rapier. The three rogues just barely managed to back away before getting sliced, their puny knives and clubs unable to beat the length of his rapier. Veridis looked quite confident, dashing even, despite the fact that fencing wasn't really his forte. The thieves tried to make ground, but a slight flick of Veridis' wrist made them back away. It was a stand-off; the bandits couldn't get close without one of them getting skewered, but if one could distract Veridis' blade long enough, the other two could flank him and overwhelm him. Both sides knew this and were merely waiting for an opening. And Veridis was the first to strike. With his off-hand, he snapped his fingers and pointed at the ground beneath the thieves feet. Suddenly, a layer of grease was underfoot, and all three fell onto their backs. Veridis took this opportunity to stab one in the hand holding a knife, disabling that hand, and stepped on the clubs of the other two.

[color=7ea7d8]"I beseech you to flee with your lives. I offer you this mercy once. I will not offer it twice."[/color]