[hr][h1][color=royalblue]Pietro Machelli[/color] and [color=powderblue]Anna Strauss[/color][/h1][hr] 


As the party of unlikely heroes entered deeper into the city, the situation began to look worse. Few civilians were left alive on the streets. The dead lay prone across the streets, their wounds still gushing blood. Anna stopped to check the pulse of one or two of them, but none were alive. Blood ran down the gutters lining the streets and down into the drains. This part of the street seemed oddly barren, as if the wights had all gone off to hunt in a different area. Pietro assumed differently; they were being ambushed. He kept his sword in his right hand, ready to strike should any opponent appear. Anna walked as close to Kane as she could without arousing suspicion. The large beetle was certainly a comfort. As Karkadin and some girl they had never seen before ran out of a building, the monstrous bug charged towards them and destroyed the wights. 

The party reached a large four-way intersection halfway between the city gates and the central keep. A shadow passed overhead, but its source disappeared as Pietro looked up. He could hear screams off in the distance. He couldn't tell whether or not they were human. The shadow passed over again. Pietro looked up at where the sun shone through the dark clouds. It seemed as if a vulture was circling overhead, but something was off about it. He watched it for a minute or two, trying to tell what it was that disturbed him about the creature. His face froze as he realized what it was. Pietro stopped in his tracks. He turned to face the party and held out his arms. 

"Stop," he said. "Look up there." He gestured to the bird with his sword. Anna followed his gaze to the bird, and frowned. 

"It's a vulture, Pietro," Anna said. "Nothing special about it." Pietro's face was frozen, his mouth agape. The bird stopped circling and began to descend. 

"That's no vulture," he said. "Everyone, get inside. Now!" Anna's eyes were still locked on the bird. She began to realize the problem. Vultures didn't have bodies that long. Vultures didn't have claws on their wings. 

"Run!" Anna scanned the intersection and identified a small butcher shop on the corner. She sprinted to it at full speed. Pietro wasn't far behind her. "Let's go!" he cried out. "Everyone follow me!" An ear-splitting, hawk-like scream echoed through the air. The black bird descended upon the party. It had the body shape of a human, with long legs ending in sharp claws and wings instead of arms. The black feathers on its body hung on by a string, as if they could fall off at any moment. Under the feathers, leathery tan flesh could be seen. It had massive black wings which cast a shadow down upon its prey, and three batlike claws at the joint of its wings. It had a leathery, human-like face and long black hair tied into a single braid. A piece of bloody cloth was stuck between two of its teeth. Its cracked lips framed misshapen, yellowed teeth. 

Anna ran for the gaping hole that was once the butcher shop's window. The creature dove after her, its clawed feet outstretched towards her wings. Anna noticed that the claws were coated in metal. Just as the monster swiped for her, she dove through the window of the shop. She hit the wooden floor hard. A shard of glass cut her right wing. She cried out in pain. The monster lunged for Pietro next, and grabbed him by his cloak. It pulled as hard as it could, but its claws cut shredded the fabric. It lost its grip and he escaped through the hole. He hoped the others weren't far behind. 

"Pietro!" Anna yelled as she ran. "What [i]is[/i] that?" He looked at her grimly. 

"Fury," he said slowly. "It's a fury." 

Outside, the situation quickly became dire. The clouds up above grew darker, shrouding the land in shadows. The wights began to approach the intersection, dragging their feet first and then beginning to jog towards the party. Some of their mouths still dripped with blood. One near the front of the pack held a severed leg in its right hand. It seemed as if a massive portion of the horde was converging on this one point. The fury swooped up just before it hit the ground and effortlessly took back off into the air. It circled the party, watching as the ambush fell into place. It was said that furies always frowned, but this one nearly smiled.