A melee ensues, at last the sellswords crash against the azure wave of gibbering oily monsters. . . And it's a slaughter. Indeed their gambit pays off as Yeek after Yeek falls prey to their experience, their art of warfare. Even despite the brash acts of the boy, Etor. He has his breastplate and competent allies to thank for his deliverance. No doubt the gods whom weave fate had a hand or two to play at that.

Siris bears a greater brunt of the Yeek assault, shield and armor similarly bound to his pale squishy flesh. Warding off any and all blows just as his personality. Regardless, he's quick with the blade and makes short work of the Blue Yeeks, though is quickly parried by the warrior who no doubt stands firm unto its death. Respectable for a hideous creature.

Surprisingly, none of the foul creatures went forth to attack Zarif, despite him wielding only his bow. Clearly, these creatures were not as bright as Zarif had given them credit. Still, it was all for the better, and though his strange words, that evoker of dark rituals had healed his leg to boot. Zarif let out a long sigh, now that most of the Yeeks outside had been routed, the rest ran hiding behind their crumbling walls.

Zarif:Looks like we dug you out of your hole, friend. The merchant gave a teasing smile, turned away, and shuttered. He had tried not to think about it before, as he was gearing for what he liked to think of as a daring charge, but now that he had a moment for things to sink in, he felt profoundly unnerved. He glanced over his shoulders at the hooded conjurer, half hidden by the broken stone wall a ways behind him. Too close... that speaker of fell words The traveler thought, shivering.

Both consciously, and subconsciously, Zarif did not like the man who called himself Iddin-ninshubur. Apart from his name being nearly impossible for Zarif's non-native tongue to pronounce, the merchant distrusted his magics and incantations. A shadow seemed to hang over him like some sort of phantom, and the fact that he had cast a spell upon Zarif, something he always tried so hard to avoid, tore at his mind. His homeland had no place for such casters of dark incantations and less for evoking strange gods. Such men were always cast out, for they often brought troubling times in their wake.

The boss always kept him around, always had, so there was nothing to be done but keep his distance. But these Yeeks too had their own evokers, and nobody would stop him from ridding the world of them. Without a second thought, Zarif kicked Salador and they road into the Ziggurat, aiming his arrow between the eyes of the fleeing fiend.

Ofik:Again!

Etor:But father! I've done this over a hundred times.

Ofik: AND YOU WILL DO 100 MORE.

Etor:Yes father! ...a sword is cooler than a lance though.

Ofik: Etor. Your battle acumen will grow as you do but you have a darkness in you. Darkness that must always be kept at bay. Death and bloodshed could further plunge you into the abyss. The long spear provides that distance. As "cool" as a sword may be you should always attack first then counter when they close the distance. The key to battle is to hit them more than you are hit.

---

Etor: Damn.

The Ensi had gotten away and the group had to rush to save him from being ambushed. The two Hellions who came to back him up made him feel better in their own way. Zarif as a scolding but relieved leader and Siris by laughing off any offense that stood before him. The young spearman pretended to be too busy concentrating on the yeeks to hear the cleanup duty remark that Zarif made. However, the flop sweat that followed most definitely gave him away. The yeek warrior that the confident Siris had struck down would've been the end of Etor.

---

As Zarif rides off in what Etor considers a really cool fashion, he feels a tinge of embarrassment. Etor weakly raises his hand towards the mounted rider.

Etor: My... my long spear.

The short spear that Zarif gave him was lighter and easier to maneuver, it was a better weapon for him to use and yet he had always followed his father's wishes to use the heavier long spear. Had his father been stifling him due to the fear of the darkness within Etor? As Siris boasted further, Etor had felt something stir within him. It wasn't an emotion it was something more, something from within, and from the world unseen. He put his hand on the shoulder of the yeek in front of him, barely alive but too base to reconsider any other course of action. He drove the short spear through the weakened yeek, its limp body slumping onto his breastplate, it's blood smearing onto the fledgling spearman. The yeek's last breathe feed whatever was stirring within him or it soothed it, the young spearman couldn't tell.


Etor:Thanks Siris. I dont know what I would've done without you and zarif.

Siris saw two yeeks lunge at him and immediately put his shield up. The first yeek slammed into the shield much harder than Siris anticipated considering it's size, but not strong enough to force the warrior lose his stance. While stopping the yeek with his shield Siris pierces the yeek through the gut, killing it in one blow. Afterwards he immediately pulls the sword out and prepares himself for the second yeek's attack, using his shield to use the yeek's momentum against it so it falls to the ground where Siris quickly finishes it off.

After finishing off the second yeet, out of the corner of his eye he spots another yeet coming towards him

Siris: "Hid yourself behind these other too huh?! Well no matter!"

When Siris got a proper look at the yeek he realized his mistake, although the yeek itself wasn't too close it's weapon was (if one could call it that that is) much closer. With a quick movement of his left arm Siris manages to deflect the Yeek's makeshift spear from stabbing him in the stomach, but not enough to completely avoid the blow which causes a relatively large cut on his right side.

Siris tries to immediately swing at the yeek but the surprise damage and the extra distance caused by the yeeks spear causes him to miss, allowing the yeek to take a couple of steps back and be out of immediate harm

Siris: "UGH!"
"You are not like the others, but you shall quickly fall to me nonetheless foul beast!"

At that moment Zarif passes them both and starts to head inside the ruins. Siris was about to take it as his cue to attack his enemy immediately since he felt like he was being left behind for being slow but stops himself when he hears his companion Etor thank him for his aid.

Siris: "Hahaha!" Siris confidently laughs trying to hide how much he's concentrating on the yeek in front of him to try to think of how to attack it without taking anymore damage
"It's the least someone of my skills can do! If you wish to thank me buy me some alcohol as celebration after we are finished!"

With those last words he rushes the yeek warrior to try to get past the spear's long reach before it can attack. The yeek tries to stab the human warrior in front of it but, with his shield, Siris hits the spear hard to his right. Following that momentum, Siris continues spinning while moving forward enough so that he turns a full circle followed by a fast and sharp cut into the yeek warrior's throat. While not enough to decapitate it, it was enough to cause it to certainly have a painful death despite its failed attempt at trying to hold its throat.

Siris: "In the meantime, let us finish off the rest of these creatures!" he shouts in Etor's direction
"Of course, I could also do it by myself! And that is what will happen if you do not hurry my young friend!! No time to waste!!" turning to face Zarif's direction

One of the creatures on the right chooses him as its last target, but one manages to slip past and attack Ashür. The blue creep is now too close to their employer for Lyun not to pay attention. He circles around the Yeek, moving towards Kastilus' spot and cleaving the creature with a swing of his weapon.

Lyun: "Good... Keep close." His words, aimed at Kastilus, could barely be heard by those nearby. If, by any chance, someone was paying attention to him, they could probably notice him whispering more words than he properly vocalized.

Ashür: ". . ." The Brute transforms the Yeek before him into a split pile of gore, sure enough the bandit is no longer needed here, their employer was safe and sound and sure enough their stipend of coin. The sounds of clashing and a distant reverent gibbering call him onward further into the fray with his comrades.

Thus, the man gives Kastilus and Lyun both but a single nod and twists about, making a straight B-line past the triumphant Siris with blade outstretched to run the final Yeek upon the field through.



"Careful." He speaks whilst driving his sword true while Zarif and Salador clack up the sand block steps to the ancient temple, "Our foes no doubt bear a trap beyond."

The Hellions make short work of the blue devils by which they encroached upon, leaving naught but a single Yeek with bow in its claws upon those amber fields. The dry grass waved dulcetly midst the midday's warm winds, marred by the vile blood of the monsters yet seemingly unperturbed.

Ashür's bladework left the skirmisher clinging to life as it retreats, fading across the steps. With the last bits of its life, the creature knocks another stone-tipped arrow and lets it fly the bandit's way.

Further on, where only the camel rider can see, another blue shaman draped in yellowed rags and holding aloft a birch bark staff breaths another few words, heralding the call of Zuug'Agblish. Then from either side of the open halls a pile of the azure imps appear brandishing the greatest of their arms. It is clear within their bleak beaded eyes that they make their last stand to defend that which they call home.

Ashür: He does not relent, the flint arrowhead skimming his shoulder only manages to bare the Desperado's fangs against the creatures. With a single fluid motion he takes to the stairs, yet bends his path upward to drive that curved sword of his a swatch through the skirmisher assailing poor Salador.


The beasts claws glance across the boiled leather for little effect, though the bandit's own sword can't quite find its mark. Regardless he finally takes in a deep breath, the stench of burnt gore filling his lungs. "Chance that our work was done for us." He wheezes, readying his stance again, with thoughts to the veritable pile of dead Yeeks at the bottom of the stairs. "Sacrifices? Or a third party? Be on your guard. . ."

Lyun: "..." There's not much to mull over at the moment, his allies are all ahead of him in their assault to the ziggurat and he can't help anyone until he catches up.

Things were progressing nicely. Everyone was gathering together to enter the ruins. They would make quick work of the enemies that were left behind. Iddin can to heal Etor and it was always much appreciated. Whatever perception people had of Iddin as weird or off putting was not shared by Etor. Etor's father had always told him that God is not present in the battlefield but this man in front of him was a contradiction to that ideology and the he respected that.

Etor wasn't a religious person either, but this Zuzu deity must be something special to find someone so devoted. Everytime he was healed the young spearmen had a better opinion of Zuzu. He always felt somewhat insulted by the the words said during the healing process but this was the most conversation he's had with anyone in this group so he chalked it up as a win.


Etor: Thank you Iddin. Tell Zuzu I am eternally grateful.

With renewed vigor, Etor rushed the remaining yeek, stabs under it's ribs and slams it to the ground in one swift motion. Etor motions to Zarif.

Etor:Thanks for the spear Zarif! Hi. Salador!

Seemingly after he told Etor to hurry, Siris noticed many of his companions all rush in to attack the enemy

Siris: 'I have become more charismatic than I thought'

Feeling it only fitting for someone of his strength to take the lead, he begins moving towards the stairs of the ziggurt.
He sees a yeek with a bow near the stairs only for it to be quickly attacked and presumably killed by Etor, but Siris keeps moving forward and goes up the stairs without hesitation

While starting to go up the stairs he sees Ashür in combat with another yeek. Although another of his companions, Makeen, was right behind him. Siris passes him right as he launches the knife at the yeek that would prove to be the killing blow. Siris keeps moving forward passing Ashür

Siris: "Do not worry, for I have arrived!" he says seemingly to Ashür but in reality to no one in particular

Although he didn't say it, he didn't even directly think it, Siris was glad to have capable allies

Passing the dying yeek's convulsing body, Siris reaches the top of the stairs seeing Zarif there as well. Having reached the top of the stairs Siris now sees the large amount of yeeks coming towards them, as well as them begin to move faster after hearing certain chants from a strange yeek. Putting these thoughts in the back of his mind,
Siris takes a couple of steps forward while walking with his shield and sword to his sides while raising his voice
Siris: "The time for the mighty to take the lead has come!!" while raising his sword toward the big group of yeeks charging towards them he continues
"HA HA HA! Truly, you are as foolish as you are unlucky to have to face me in battle and not even attempt to run away!"

Siris stops walking and begins getting into his combat stance

"For against the likes of you, if you fight me with one, ten or one hundred; the only thing that will change is your body count!"

The slight scrape left by the shambling creature stung Zarif in his arm, but it wasn't serious, just barley enough to break his clothes and skin. Finally, his allies had mostly made it to the ruins, and he briefly watched them effectively take down the Yeeks the merchant had charged past. A few of them crowded around him, Ashur, the small theif, Sirus, and the new recruit a little behind. Thankfully, that conjurer was still a ways behind them all.

Zarif: "Its still my spear, careful not to break it, else you've bought it" Zarif teased back at the boy, patting the over-sized long spear he had since strapped to Salador's side. He was just making fun of course, and he felt a slight pulse of pride seeing the boy take down the Yeek with military efficiency.

He glanced back down the corridor, at the formation of foes clogging the way. This could get brutal, a wall of foes, with archers behind... it was difficult to make it through that unscathed, and the enemy was already in formation besides. Something had to be done about those archers, lest they all gang up on one of the mercenaries. Zarif kicked the camel and charged down at the formation, and readied an arrow. The larger warriors largely blocked view of the skirmishers behind, but, for a split second, under one of their arms, he saw the archer, and let his arrow fly without even a moments hesitation. The arrow flew, and buried deep into one of the archer's eyes, and it fell on the stone floor, dead.

Turning mere feet from the Warrior's spearpoints, Zarif rode back into the alcove behind Sirus, satisfied with his shot.

Siris's war-shouts bellow throughout the hall, daunting perhaps even the insane monsters, yet only for moments as the streaks of red across his breastplate and blade seek only to expound upon their inherent rage.

It's not long now, the Hellions suffer only minor more nicks and scrapes as each yet more wet thud's cascade across the once hallowed ziggurut's grounds, like that of a fresh bass tossed across a bed of seaweed. That remaining ascetic to the Petrified God did not falter in its garbled speech, even as the distant words of the God in Glass carried into their profaned structure. It only sought to emboldened the creature's fervor, their death gaze glimmering its last embers in the shadows.

But three of the imps remained about them, the clarion call of what Kastilus deems so worthy of this sojurn calling from the cracked stairs descending beyond, by which numerous slicks of blood seep.

Ashür: The bandit lets out a deep sigh, one of relief for the sake of the injuries he and his band had sustained thus far. While he was not off his guard, even in such moments disaster could strike, it was clear; the end of the detestable beasts. "Let us mop it up." He says, "Just as the boy speaks, its the scholar's treasure we're after." He adds by way of Makeen, giving the young-ling a good nod, recompense for his practiced hand with a good weighted knife.

Ashür darts forward, weaving past the final bow-Yeek. Straight for the robed creature behind. It sees its final moments, expecting the cold rasp of metal to be its end. Yet opens its eyes to the hall, its burden lighter. The bandit holds tight a palm-sized wood fetish of beech, by which the divine symbol '𒀀' is seen. The Mystic recognized it immediately, grasped in that oily claw. A healing Theurgy, no different than Iddin's, at least in effect.

He holds it aside without a word, no doubt an indirect grace for the thief's help. Perhaps some expectations along with it.

Kastilus: "Excellent work Hellions!" The royal robed man clasps his work-hardened hands together with a good call from the fields, believing most of the work to be all but wrapped up. From there he moves alongside the muscled brute, to whom he speaks, "I must thank you. . . Lyun. For paying such a keen eye to my safety! But I assure you I'll be quite alright."

The Yeek warrior stands at the halfway point of the stairwell. These guys were a serious threat to fighters like Makeen and Etor, so a team-up would be the most appropriate action. Etor smiled as he developed a report with the camel rider.


Etor: I'll take good care of it. The weapon... Hey Makeen! Let's take this guy down.

Etor had been very lucky in his battles. He was not unaware of this but thought nothing of it going into the encounter with the yeek warrior. Maybe Makeen and Etor could do a cool team-up move. With that thought in mind, Etor missed.

The Warrior sneered, it had the high ground and the upper hand. While it might die the warrior took solace in the fact that it would take down one of the intruders before it passed into the next world. The yeek was delighted to kill someone so young as well and, with a thrust of his spear envisioned the young spearman's body attached to the end of its gnarled piece of wood. With this in mind, the yeek warrior also missed.

The two warriors stared at each other, while not embarrassed, certainly surprised. However, of the two, only Etor smiled.


Etor: Save some treasure for me! The rest of us got this!

A few Yeeks broke past Zarif and Siris, but their once formidable formation had faltered. Peaking down the corridor, the merchant's eyes locked hatefully with the Yeek Ensi, every fiber of his being wanted to charge right at it and drive a spear through its head. No, without any of its brood, theres nobody to use its magic on. Kill the bowman first.

It took a great deal of self control, but Zarif managed to ride past the other yeeks that had ran past him, and in front of the Skirmisher, one of the last of them. Do this, and there is no risks. Don't let someone else take an arrow because of your hunger for blood. After a quick deep breath, Zarif steadied himself, and drew his bow.

The shot wasn't perhaps as clean as his last one. He missed it's heart by just a hair. It staggered, and managed to send a mangled stick it called an arrow his way, leaving a shallow wound in his side. Zarif paid it no mind and sent another shot, this time, the creature didn't get back up.

Zarif rode down the hallway, and noticed what almost seemed to be an ancient, locked door. He also spied a large staircase, and briefly hoped that there would be no more of these Yeeks to come reinforce.

Zarif: "Hey, Ma-keen! There's a door this way! Come here!" He shouted, waving

Siris prepares himself as the yeeks quickly rush towards him and his allies. Right before the first yeeks are about to reach he sees an arrow come flying towards him. With quick reflexs Siris blocks the arrow with his shield, avoiding a very unneeded injury. Although, having had to have move his shield to stop the arrow, the yeek warrior right in front of Siris was willing and able to take advantange of that brief opening in the young warrior's defenses.

Noticing the yeek's attack, and thanks to his many years of training, Siris pivots on his left foot bringing his right foot behind his left and effectively turning his body quickly 90 degrees. The yeek manages to slice the frontal part of Siris's abdomen, but noticeably nothing that could be considered even minimally fatal; as opposed to the very serious wound if his dodge wasn't succesful.

With as much speed as before, Siris quickly puts his right leg in front if his left in a lunging position, while simultaneously pushing the spear out of the way because of the turning of his body, and pierces the yeek through the chest.

Siris: Not bad foul beast, not many can have the honor of injuring me HAHAHA! while removing the sword from the yeek's chest as it falls to the ground.

While fighting Siris had noticed some of the other yeeks had slipped past him, although hearing the sound of battling and yelling behind him he knew his allies were currently fighting them and saw no need in having to personally go and defeat them.

Siris begins to move forward to prepare to fight the archer that had previously fired upon him but is delighted to notice he doesn't have to bother himself seeing as how Zarif had already shot two arrows into it causing its quick demise.

With the archer out of the way Siris sets his sights on the weird looking yeek that had caused the other ones to increase in strength.

Siris: So, you thought you could stay behind safely while we fought and, in your hopes, were defeated? Allow my blade to show you the error of your ways

With quick movement Siris runs at the yeek ensi, slicing its head off before it can react.

Siris: Hmph, at least attempt to put up a fight he says while taking a moment to look at everything.