After being close to becoming wolf food a few times, Adam was quite grateful for MacKensie's help. Before trying to help Fenna, he had smiled at her, thanking her for her assistance and for the compliment as well. However, he was a little annoyed that the Alpha Female had escaped the vines so easily. Fenna being able to escape in the moment the beast was trapped had made it worthwhile, but the man had hoped for a more permanent ensnarement of the wolf. It was clear that a more durable solution to this problem would be needed and he knew it would take time for him to create one.

With his magic, the Druid started to grow a large, durable tree where the vines had been as the others fought the Alpha Female. Joji and Zell's martial prowess impressed the man, as did Lillianna and James' spells. Adam was glad they all seemed to work together so well. Fenna impressed him the most though; in a moment where she could have ran, the woman chose to fight the wolf again. Brave stuff. Of course, MacKensie's rapid-fire arrow barrage was also great, and everyone's attacks had given the man time to finish creating his plant. First, the Druid would attempt to pull the tree up from the ground. If that succeeded, he would hold it in the air in the right area for what he wanted to do next. Assuming nothing stopped him, he would wait until he was absolutely sure none of his teammates would get hit, then try to thrust the tree at the Alpha Female in such a way that the longest part would be parallel to the beast. That way, the force of the plant's movement and the weight of it would push the wolf into the gorge, removing one of the group's enemies from their fight. Adam had no idea if this creature could "jump on light" like the male one could, but it seemed reasonable that she couldn't do that since the two wolves looked different from one another. He may not have been able to strike this beast with a sword or lightning bolt, but the man was determined to do what he could to help.

The Alpha Male raised a paw to swipe as Joji rushed in with super speed. Blood thrown into the eyes caught the huge direwolf off guard. A veteran move. By a stroke of fortune (as if the monster needed any more avdantages,) it's claws blocked the first strike blindly and it lashed out at the man in front of it, who dodged and punched it clean in the nose. The Alpha Male reeled back a step, unable to see, and couldn't avoid the flying halberd that buried itself into the tough haunches, causing it to whimper in pain.

Before Zell could land any sword strikes, the Alpha Male barked louder than ever before, creating a 360 blast of wind that knocked both swordsman several feet backwards and to the floor, the razor wind cutting at them. James' light spell landed directly, but the Alpha's eyes were already squeezed tight shut, stinging with blood, so it had no effect............



Fenna's dagger landed squarely in the Alpha Female's neck, but it's hide was so tough, the Ranger did not have the power to sink it deep. But it hurt enough that this Alpha also was forced to use it's area-of-effect attacks to defend itself.

The direwolf's tail rattled and then a cloud of poison gas exploded all around it, causing Fenna and Arthur to cough and choke. They would be forced to retreat from the area or choke to death.

The lightning bolt of Lillianna struck the beast and stunned it long enough for MacKensie's shots to land also, but while the Twin Element Mage was powerful enough to at least scratch the Alpha Female, MacKensie's attacks were like mere wasp stings - not nearly enough to do anything more than pester the monster.

The Alpha rushed forward in the posion cloud and grabbed Fenna's spear once more, then threw the Dutch woman like a rag doll right into MacKensie, knocking them both down. Then the Chimera Wolf spun and tail-whipped Arthur across the face, sending him flying also, back toward the front line.........



.........The Alpha Female was about to capitalize. After doing so much damage with quick attacks, it was time to kill one of these adventurers. The spell casters came through with support to save the day once more.

James' blinding spell hit the Alpha Female perfectly, providing the perfect cover for Adam's great tree which came swooping down and smacked the direwolf into the gorge.

Suddenly the Alpha Male came in for a counter attack, jumping up and then air-jumping on light, to position itself high in the air above the three wizards. It barked another soundblast, the projectile of concentrated waves coming down to hit the floor amongst the Clive, James, Lillianna and Adam, exploding the rock and dirt and catching them all in the blast-radius for significant damage......



The party had been decimated in matter of moments. All adventurers were hurt from the unbelievable strength of the Alphas. This was just a taste of the challenges that would stand in their way on their journey for answers. How could they have known that they'd wandered into a region classified as a Platinum Tier expedition by the Adventurers Guild. And there were places out there called Diamond Tier. As complete newcomers with only a single battle fought, their mere survival thus far, spoke to how special they were.

As the Alpha Male landed in the centre of the battlefield, cutting the party off from regouping together. It growled, saliva dripping from it's bared teeth. Blood trickling from the wound where the halberd was stuck casually in it's haunches.

And from the blackness of the gorge, the Alpha Female found it's way back up, appearing one human-ish forearm at a time as it scaled the climb. When it's head appeared, it was clear it was furious and thirsting for revenge. It muscled up and jumped onto flat ground, turning it's attention to Arthur and the two Rangers.

Both Direwolves were injured, but nowhere near close to being out of the fight. And now it was their turn to go on the offensive. Things were looking grim. And just when an onlooker might think; it couldn't get any worse... an even more powerful enemy appeared..........

There he stood, his menacing presence seemingly distorting the very Source-riddled air of the Mazy Hillocks. Tall and sleek, plate-steel from head to toe. A potent mix of technology from beyond Mytheria, and powerful, forbidden magic of the Dark Domain. Zigmund Mugba-Zarak - elite unit of General Saladin's scout force - gazed down upon the battlefield, his visor glowing red, one hand resting on the pommel of his sword.

A red light beamed out from his helmet and he scanned the adventurers, searching, homing in on his primary objective. That infrared light zoned in on Lillianna's satchel. "There you are."

Diving from the cliff, he flipped once, drew his sword and threw it down towards the Alpha Male. Before he landed, water magic - his specialization - formed a bladed gauntlet of pure aqua around his fist. It all happened within seconds and with a loud crash, he plunged his magical blade through the Alpha Female for one-hit kill. The Alpha Male was dead too, the elemental ninja's sword having gone right through it's skull.

Zigmund raised his chin, set his sights on Lillianna, then sprinted towards her.

MacKensie was dazed and hurt, lay on her back. She'd never had a fully-grown human being thrown at her before. It was not an experience she wanted to live through ever again. Urgency filled her mind, forcing her to try and get up. She managed it partly, turning onto her side and leaning on an elbow, trying to blink away the stars she was seeing, grasping around for her weapon, which she'd dropped in the impact.

"Are you alright, Fenna?" she asked the woman, her vision mostly blocked by the cloud of posion gas that they were on the edge of.

The explosion of dirt and rock, where they'd originally set up the party formation, drew her gaze. Seeing her friends caught in the blast gave her the second wind to rise up, though her knees were a little shaky. Then, where the posion cloud dispersed, the Alpha Female appeared and it did not look happy at all. Now she could see all of her friends. All down. All out. MacKensie wasn't sure what she could do. Her crossbow bolts had done virtually nothing to the creature. She felt helpless. And with that helplessness, fear and despair threatened to overtake her.

"Grrrgh," she growled through gritted teeth, forcing her fear away with every ounce of willpower she had remaining. If she was going to die, she'd do it fighting. And so she drew her dagger, holding it in place of her lost crossbow, her left hand closed into a fist and extended like boxer. Slowly she moved away from Fenna and Arthur, hoping to draw attention away from them, keeping eye-contact with the Alpha Female who watched her back with deadly intent. It was all she could do not to mentally break, try to flee, cry out for help - anything but face that terrifying gaze. But Sir Axel Trydant did not raise a coward! And MacKensie had not forgotten the face of her father. "Come on then, you disgusting fiend. Let's finish this."

"Finally, I've found you," came a voice from high up on the cliffside.

MacKensie looked up, barely able to see as she was so close to the cliff, but she saw the red light covering them all. And when it locked onto Lillianna, MacKensie started to realise what was going on. The spirit-seeing lightning mage had warned them already. Someone was after them. And now was the time that the prophecy had come to pass.

Seeing the two Alphas die so easily was silmultaneously relieving and terrifying at the same time. How could one person so easily accomplish what the whole party had struggled with? What was this thing!? MacKensie was shocked, feeling like she was caught in slow-motion as she followed the ninja's gaze to where Lillianna was. The Ranger reached out to her friend and shouted, which broke the spell.

"HE'S AFTER THE CUBE!!!"

The ninja started running, as did MacKensie. From her position closer to the wizard, she ran to cut off the new enemy, leapt into his path and sweeped into a low slash at his leg, aiming for the knee where his armour seemed weakest.

"HE'S AFTER THE CUBE!!!"

My forced march throughout the night and day has used a significant portion of my magical reserves. It has been years since I ever felt like this. I'd almost forgotten what it meant to be 'tired.'

No matter. I am still beyond any of them.

The Ranger is fast, no doubt. Faster than she should be. Urgency. Adrenaline. Love for her friends. Humanity. Special qualities that make a person break through barriers. Admirable.

No matter. I am still faster.

Zigmund looked to his left as MacKensie swooped in, then changed speed instantly. He slowed almost to a stop so he could crouch down at the last second, grabbing the Ranger by the wrist before her dagger could land. He yanked her up as he stood up straight and punched her in the stomach, then tossed her aside. His sight turned back onto Lillianna and he was heading towards her once more.

"Hand it over, woman."

The time taken to deal with MacKensie had slowed him barely. He rushed the wizard, aiming to grab her by the throat.

Fenna coughed, tried to inhale air only to take in more gas and coughed again. She stepped back, futilely trying to wave away the gas in front of her as she stumbled back. Suddenly the beast had her spear between her jaws and she felt herself being lifted, swung around and suddenly she was airborne. She collided with someone and took whoever it was down with her. Her chest ached from the coughing, the rest of her body from the collision and the force with which she hit the ground.

Fresh air. She took in a breath and coughed so hard she almost threw up as she slowly rolled to a side. She lifted her head to MacKensie when she asked if she was okay and shook her head. Mackensie was on her feet first, Fenna followed slowly. Her legs trembled and she rubbed her elbow as made a step towards her spear that lay on the ground. Thankfully it was still in one piece. She looked up just in time to see the female wolfcreature be smacked into the gorge and she sighed in relief.

Then she heard the voice and spun on her feet to see someone dressed in metal, someone who killed the big wolf with a single strike of his blade. For a moment her body didn't move, all she could do was stare at it happen.

MacKensie's warning prompted her to action. The spear in her hand turned so the end faced to the ground. She ran a few paces before planting it between the rocks and used it quickly to cover the distance between herself, the wizard and the attacker, to attack from above. It scared her to see her fellow ranger be taken out so easily, but she had to try something. Hopefully, it would at least distract the enemy enough for the others to try and help Lilliana.

The falcon flew up to built-up speed and dove towards Zigmund and Lilliana as she noticed her master do the same.

@xenon

Joji Yamazaki

Joji was knocked onto his ass by the male alpha wolf’s loud bark. “Shit.” Cursing under his breath slowly trying to get back onto his feet. His body was shaking a little from all the damage that was done to him. All though he was glad to have gotten a good lick on the head wolf. “Fuckin mutt.” Grinning while getting his sword ready. Running over to try and help the others against the male alpha. Looking over as the female alpha climbed out of the gorge it just fell from. The whole situation was starting to look not great for the group.

The large man turned to face the voice that was speaking to the group, coming down to attack the two leader wolves. Looking a little impressed that this single person could easily dispose of the wolf leaders. But felt a little weird out by the way the person was dressed, it reminded it was quite inhuman.

He didn’t like the look of this guy, and when he rushed over toward Lillianna only aroused his suspicion even more. His demanding the cube only made him act quickly, this guy's intentions were obviously not good. Trying to run over towards her to stop the masked man from doing whatever he was going to do. Stopping a few feet from the intruder. "Oi, if you want that cube your gonna have to go through me." Removing the blue jacket of his kimono, throwing it on the ground. He stood his ground now getting into a fighting stance, but strangely not pulling out his sword. "Your pretty good with that sword of yours, but let's see how good you are with your fists."

Doing so also revealed to the group his back tattoo. If someone were knowledgeable in Yakuza culture, they would instantly recognize that Joji was a former Yakuza member.

( Joji's Battle Theme )

"Oi, if you want that cube your gonna have to go through me."

"Your pretty good with that sword of yours, but let's see how good you are with your fists."

Tall. Quinity's sake, tall like a damn orc. Rippling with muscle. A rare breed of human. Her majesty would like him. Potential, certainly.

No matter. He will die like the rest.

"Gladly," was Zigmund's cold response as he ran and jumped straight into a martial stance, testing the giant man with double jab.

Once again, Zigmund felt a tinge of admiration. Joji managed to keep up with a rapid exchange of punches between the two, although Zigmund was merely feeling him out and now caught the Japanese man's fist, steel-dressed fingers with vice-like grip. He yanked the man off balance, at the same time as launching a power right-

"Ahh!" Zigmund exclaimation of surprise when the talons of Fenna's falcon familiar started tearing at neck and helmet. The falcon's damage was merely cosmetic but enough to annoy and interupt the ninja from knocking Joji out. What did actually hurt was the following aerial attack from the other Ranger. "Ugh!"

Whether it was a blade or boots, Fenna's attack knocked Zigmund off balance and he stumbled, shoving Joji away to prevent the huge man from taking advantage of his vulnerability.

By the Gods, these annoying flies are coming from every angle!

Zigmund turned into a roundhouse kick aimed at Fenna to keep her at bay, then hopped backwards to reset himself. Although he didn't get a chance as Arthur came charging with a swinging anchor and a war cry. Zigmund didn't have time to move, but the anchor crashed through nothing but water.

Zigmund's body had turned completely to water, and after the anchor went through him, the body of water splashed onto the ground. The puddle did not soak into the ground - it slid over the dirt and rock at speed, away from the attackers to a position behind the wizards. After that, Zigmund's body reformed so fast, it looked like he jumped out of the ground, his physical plate-steel form taking the place of the water once fully formed.

Relentless in his mission, Zigmund once more zoned in on Lillianna and rushed towards her, but now he was angry. Water magic materialized his aqua-blade fist once again, and tried to run the magical blade right through the white-haired woman.

"HE'S AFTER THE CUBE!!!"

The ninja started running, as did MacKensie. From her position closer to the wizard, she ran to cut off the new enemy, leapt into his path and sweeped into a low slash at his leg, aiming for the knee where his armor seemed weakest.

Zigmund looked to his left as MacKensie swooped in, then changed speed instantly. He slowed almost to a stop so he could crouch down at the last second, grabbing the Ranger by the wrist before her dagger could land. He yanked her up as he stood up straight and punched her in the stomach, then tossed her aside. His sight turned back onto Lillianna and he was heading towards her once more.

"Hand it over, woman."

MACKENSIE!!!

Her throat tried to cry out to the Frenchwoman with her name, but all that emerged was a tiny squeaky croak at the very most. It was like her throat was shut up, unable to vocalize the words her mouth was trying to move to say. Like it wasn't just her limbs freezing up, but her very body itself. Even so, she was at least out of her stupor for the moment being despite her inability to answer the murderous enemy's demand of her.

"Oi, if you want that cube your gonna have to go through me." Removing the blue jacket of his kimono, throwing it on the ground. He stood his ground now getting into a fighting stance, but strangely not pulling out his sword. "Your pretty good with that sword of yours, but let's see how good you are with your fists."

"Gladly," was Zigmund's cold response as he ran and jumped straight into a martial stance, testing the giant man with double jab.

Once again, Zigmund felt a tinge of admiration. Joji managed to keep up with a rapid exchange of punches between the two, although Zigmund was merely feeling him out and now caught the Japanese man's fist, steel-dressed fingers with vice-like grip. He yanked the man off balance, at the same time as launching a power right-

"Ahh!" was Zigmund's exclamation of surprise when the talons of Fenna's falcon familiar started tearing at neck and helmet. The falcon's damage was merely cosmetic but enough to annoy and interrupt the ninja from knocking Joji out. What did actually hurt was the following aerial attack from the other Ranger. "Ugh!"

Joji! Fenna! Her falcon! They were desperately trying to stop this thing from getting the cube, and getting to her, but something in Lillianna's gut simply knew one fact for certain: They couldn't stop this thing. But they were trying anyway, because that was all they could do. It was all they could do to try to stay alive, though-

Zigmund turned into a roundhouse kick aimed at Fenna to keep her at bay, then hopped backwards to reset himself. Although he didn't get a chance as Arthur came charging with a swinging anchor and a war cry. Zigmund didn't have time to move, but the anchor crashed through nothing but water.

Zigmund's body had turned completely to water, and after the anchor went through him, the body of water splashed onto the ground.

Arthur couldn't do it. Fenna had a roundhouse kick made at her to try to toss her aside. Joji hadn't even been able to stop him. MacKensie had been gut-punched and tossed aside like a ragdoll.

No matter how hard her body tried to scream her lips couldn't do anything but silently move and shake. Not a single noise could escape the paralyzing terror and fear, not even as she watched the group members trying to defend her be tossed aside or thrown away or ignored like they were almost nothing in the end. Nothing but a speed bump to the enemy as it continued to return to its charge in her direction with clearly murderous intent over and over again.

That wasn't a man or beast, that was some...some thing!

It was some abomination born of the craft of the Witch Queen and her minions, made for a singular purpose to kill anything in its path. It was something well above them in power, that wasn't hard to perceive, which had been sent to kill them all and return the core to its original home like they were nothing but a little fart being dissipated in the wind. She'd hoped something wouldn't catch up to them like this before they got to Valheim, though she'd still feared it all the same still, and now it had appeared out of the blue and the terror began to unfold right before her very eyes.

The puddle did not soak into the ground - it slid over the dirt and rock at speed, away from the attackers to a position behind the wizards. After that, Zigmund's body reformed so fast, it looked like he jumped out of the ground, his physical plate-steel form taking the place of the water once fully formed.

Relentless in his mission, Zigmund once more zoned in on Lillianna and rushed towards her, but now he was angry. Water magic materialized his aqua-blade fist once again, and tried to run the magical blade right through the white-haired woman.

She barely could move her body to turn around in time, placing her pack with the cube in it behind her and away from the ninja charging at her in the process. Even so, the enemy had moved behind them. No one was in between her and the enemy now, and he seemed to be more than simply charging for her...anger. Perhaps that was the right feeling she got from it. Just moving behind her and taking up more directly lethal measures to just get it all over with.

She couldn't get out of the way in tim-



"A-A-Ahhhh..."

A soft squeak came from her now-loosening vocal chords as she was impaled by the water blade in her mid-torso, below her heart for sure (she was still for the moment after all) but above her stomach and not piecing through her pack where the cube was sitting in (at least). The perfect spot to literally knock the air out of her, really, as the body behind the blow likewise crashed into her from behind the stab. It wasn't enough to knock her over, though it was enough to put her body in contact with the murderous enemy who had come after the cube all the same, her hands even grasping his forearms as her staff fell simply to the ground with a smaller 'thud' in the heat of the moment as her hands lost their physical strength from the impact.

And time seemed to slow down, at least to her perception.

Cold water impaling her torso, piercing into organs and twisting slightly on impact with her body, a strange sensation akin to the cool feeling of metal on a cold summer's night before the raw adrenaline numbed the pain away in a heartbeat. At the same time, however, she could still feel the blood...so much blood. But just the warm of it. It was her own lifeblood, which as a warm feeling began to spread from the affected area began pouring out in a spreading warm tide around the blade hilt and over her clothes and onto the ground and their feet as the end of the sword stuck clearly out of her mid-back. Her lungs burned as they tried to scramble for air to breathe in, even as she came to unconsciously realize a lung had been punctured to boot by the attack...or at least hit by it somehow. There wasn't really any time to think about it even in the best case scenario (which this was definitely not).

And yet-



Without a word or sound being made, but looking Zigmund directly in his singular cybernetic eye with deadly determination as blood began to trickle from out of corners of the white-haired girl's mouth as well, the hands and body of the mage coursed with raw electrical lightning being pushed out of itself as quickly and plentifully as it could be. She was attempting to pass it all into the water-capable body of the murderous yet loyal Zigmund from their myriad points of physical contact, or heck keep pushing to discharge it from herself if he tried to back away at least.

As for her death? She'd died once already. She could recall everything before it went black, and she'd never be able to forget it. She'd never see her uncle's home again. She'd maybe even die right now within these forsaken wilds in a new world without getting a chance to live a new life here or something. A tragedy at best...perhaps being a pathetic second existence at worst.

She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. She wanted to rage. She wanted to do so many things in that moment, and in so many other moments. But if there was one consolation to her in this, it was that this fool of an overpowered enemy had made one crucial mistake in all of this as it passed through her mind quietly in the very moment before the lightning:



If her attack succeeded, Lillianna wouldn't stop doing so until she would drain herself of all the magical energy her body could muster or take in or carry...whatever the case was in that situation. If it succeeded, as she would push electricity into the enemy and likewise end up shocking herself at the same time in such a case, the group would hear the vocal chords of the mage compulsively shrieking in a terrible yet mighty scream of incredible pain out into the open air around them. Crackling white lightning coursing over her body and that of the enemy's would be highly visible if she succeeded in her attack, creating a proper light show and cooking any moisture or grass and such on the ground below their feet at the same time due to the heat produced by it all.

Meanwhile the mage's brain would only drive with one intent, one goal, one thought she was still capable of doing even under these circumstances...'more'. More of what, one may ask? More Lightning, until the point she could push out no more of it..

The moment the (for fuck's sake) Ninja made his entrance and took care of the two wolves he knew there was a new problem but rather than do as Mac he didn't act, he observed, fast, skilled, used magic (water), heavy armored and appeared to be wiping their asses with relatively low effort even as Fenna, Arthur, and Joji ganged up against him. All in all, it was easy to come to a conclusion.

They were fucked

This was not someone they were prepared to face in any way, maybe if they had more experience or if they had some form of training they could have put up more of a fight, sadly they didn't and the result was in front of him in the form of Lilliana making a light show as she and the Ninja screamed in pain. He ignored the lizard part of his brain that demanded he rushed and tried to fight the guy head on, the wound seemed deep and without his spells she was likely to not make it.

That didn't mean that just because he couldn't nobody else did.

"Zell! Separate them!"

The plan on his mind was solidifying, all that lighting, if it didn't do anything he would eat his hat, so the question was, could they take him before that? No time to find out.

But first best to get some insurance.

"Fenna! Tell your bird to take the cube and go to Valhiem! If this guy wants it so much he will have to learn to fucking fly!" What he didn't say is that if they failed to defeat him they would have to serve as distractions "Adam restrain him! Mac arrows! Don't let him move freely! Everyone else gang up on this asshole!"

He didn't rush into the fray, the moment Lilliana and the enemy were separated he would rush in and take her away from him to start treating her injuries, she was impaled, which meant entrance and exit wound so he would have to remove the sword (he prayed that the sword was not forcibly removed during the exchange) safely and then apply some form of a tourniquet to mantain pressure on both sides and her insides inside, with some luck his spell and whatever medicine was on their packs would provide enough to make her recover. He just needed an opportunity.

"Ah fuck," was the extremely strained voice of Zell Brooks. "That hurt."

He rolled over and struggled to even get to his knees. The pain of the cutting wind was searing through his body still - no physical cuts to speak of, and yet he felt like a thousand sharp razors were cycloning around his insides. He could barely feel the ground underneath him. His nerves were shot, at this moment. Unluckily for him, he took the brunt of power from the 360 wind attack of the Alpha Male, being right in front of the jaws of the beast when it barked the spell. And now he was barely able to move his limbs, while he watched Joji make it up to his feet before the Englishman.

Beyond Joji, he could see MacKensie facing off against the Alpha Female and he smiled. He could tell she was frightened, but it only made her more admirable, for her back was straight, her determination on display. Two drinks, huh? he thought. Sure... why not.

And then everything changed. The menacing voice of the new threat. The red light falling on the area. The death of the Alphas and MacKensie's shout.

A new shot of adrenaline combined with James' stamina buff to boost Zell's muscles and get him to his feet. He started running, but faltered and fell down to one knee. As the metal ninja began barreling through his friends, brushing them aside with ease as he targeted Lillianna, urgency pushed him through the pain and back to his feet. The fact that nobody's attacks seemed to be able to damage the powerful enemy occured to Zell as he continued towards the action. Running off instinct, his brain need not calculate the benefit of grabbing the ninja's sword, which was sticking out of the Alpha wolf. He didn't consider the consequences of touching a weapon tainted by a user who was clearly enchanted with evil magic. Zell was never one to think much about anything.

He just did stuff.

Throwing his own sword to one side as he ran, he twirled as he passed the dead Alpha - gripping the ninja sword and pulling it free all in one motion - and kept on running, only a few steps behind Arthur, preparing to follow up the anchor-wielder's attack with a strike of his own.

When the ninja dropped into a puddle of water, Zell refused to take the time to be flabbergasted by the ridiculousness of the situation. He instantly changed tack and continued to run, dropping into a roll to avoid Arthur's wide-sweeping attack, then back to his feet and heading right toward Lillianna. Whatever the hell just happened to the ninja, if Zell couldn't track him, he could anticipate where the enemy was going.

Bingo!

And there he was, materializing behind the spellcasters. But he was too far away! Zell pushed his pained muscles as best as he could, sprinting with everything he had. But the ninja was too fast. He wouldn't make it.

"Lillianna!"

The impact of the water-blade making contact, felt like a stab in the chest for himself. As the blade poked out of the wizard's back, Zell crumbled to his knees, his wide eyes watering, his jaw dropped. He was too late. He wasn't fast enough. The distance was too much to cover. And now one of his friends was dead. He'd been trying to mentally prepare for the possibility this would happen, but nothing could've prepared him for this moment - this feeling of loss. Unassailable, violent loss. Right in front of his eyes.

Both wizard and ninja suddenly exploded into a crackling thunderstorm of electricity and Lillianna's screams filled the labyrinth. Zell could only watch on in shock and awe. The brave woman had replied to her enemy with her own powerful counterattack. She's not dead! was Zell's thought - his only concern.

"Zell! Separate them!"

He blinked back to reality so fast, a single bead of tears jumped off each eye. Zell rose up and ran into the storm, grabbing Lillianna by her shoulders and kicking the plate-steel ninja backwards. Electricity rushed through the Englishman's body, causing him to cry out in agony through a tightly-clenched jaw. Nonetheless, he was successful in separating them, and fell to his knees with Lillianna in his arms. Thank fuck that the lightning did not persist for long after that, because the pain was far beyond anything Zell had ever experienced in his two lives. Even after the electricity dispersed, Zell's jaw remained clenched shut and he was growling in pain. All his focus was on trying not hurt Lillianna anymore than she already was, as he cradled her in his voltage-stiffened arms.

When James came over and took her off his hands, Zell fell sideways, face hitting the scorched earth. Seeing the ninja sword lay there next to him, reminded him that the fight wasn't yet over yet. There was still the impossible task of defeating this ridiculously powerful foe. He grabbed the sword and used it as a walking stick to get to his feet.

Dropping into Stone Stance, he stood in protection of James and Lillianna, waiting to see the next move of the enemy. Stone Stance was a classic duelists discipline, tailored for one-vs-one encounters and embodied the art of counter-fighting. For every enemy action, there was a solid reaction, with a deep theory of traps and counters laid into the foundation. If the ninja attacked him, then this would be his best chance to land a hit on the enemy with his own sword - some kind of counter strike.

On the other hand, if there was no attack then at least James would get time to try and heal Lillianna.

Adam was alarmed at all the damage his teammates were taking. Claw strikes, wind blasts, and poison gas? This was just ridiculous. At least the plan to knock the Alpha Female into the gorge seemed to work. Yes, now they could-

The man's train of thought was interrupted by a soundblast from the Alpha Male, one that was quite dangerous to the magical trio. The youngest of them took a moment to get reoriented, being in a great deal of pain. Nothing seemed to be broken, but this felt like the ogre strike all over again. (Or "all ogre again" as Eric might have joked.) Would getting hurt be a daily thing now?  Eventually he did get up, only to be greeted by the sight of the female wolf rising from the depths of the ground. This very well could be the end of him, and more importantly, everyone else.

Another sight soon appeared though; some kind of dark ninja, one who made the wolves that had tormented the party look like puppies by killing them instantly. The enemy revealed his purpose soon enough by charging after Lillianna. She was going to die, and then everyone else would die. And it was all his fault! Adam cursed himself; they wouldn't be in this situation if he had been a better navigator, or if he had been smart enough to tell Vadim to provide more help than a map and incredibly basic directions. The red-eyed man wanted to yell at everyone to flee, to hold off this foe by himself somehow. He'd probably die, but at least it would make up for putting everyone else in danger so foolishly.

But MacKensie was too fast for him! She yelled about the cube instead and moved to intercept the enemy. He was dismayed to see her get punched and tossed aside like garbage. Adam resolved to do what he could to help, but Joji and Fenna had charged at this ninja next. He certainly wasn't a hand to hand fighter like they were, so it was best to think of a good strategy before following their lead. Channeling his inner James? That would have been funnier if the situation wasn't so serious. The efforts of the swordsman and bird master were valiant, but they didn't seem to halt the foe's advance much. Even mighty Arthur's anchor swing didn't phase him, as this thing was apparently some kind of water creature. Water ninja? Eric would probably have referenced that "Naruto" show now. That wasn't important though; what mattered was Lillianna was in danger! He would have to-

Once again, Adam's train of thought was interrupted, this time by a powerful display of lightning. Lillianna's resolve to do damage while being stabbed was impressive, far more so than anything he could do. Even so, the Druid did agree with James' idea; it was time to restrain this thing. But how? Slamming a tree on the ninja that killed a creature resistant to that strategy would not work, and vines wouldn't be effective either. The "water ninja" part though, maybe that could be used against it!

After he was sure that Lillianna was away from the enemy and under Zell's protection, Adam took a split-second to identify patches of soil close enough to the enemy that would work for his "plan," and then used his magic to create trees that could absorb large quantities of water around the opponent. If that worked, the Druid would manipulate as many of their roots as possible to attempt to surround the enemy. He would try to restrain him as James said using the roots to bind this foe, but if he tried turning into his water form, the red-eyed man would instead attempt to use the roots to absorb the watery form of this ninja like a plant would normally obtain the liquid it needed to sustain itself. Adam had no idea if this would work or if he even had the capability to do that much all at once, but he had to try. There was no time for doubt or overly analytical thinking while everyone else risked their lives in battle. He would do his best to help his team or die trying.

Willpower. Cunning. She looked right in my eyes. Even as her blood flowed around my blade. As if she had me right where she wanted me. Lightning. The only thing that such a bunch of weaklings could've had that'd do any significant damage. Perhaps I should've scouted.

And now stands before me the male version of her.

Willpower. Cunning. Almost killed himself to save her from being finished off. Lightning hurt him far more than it hurt me. And now he looks into my eyes. As if he has me right where he wants me. My own weapon. The only thing such a weakling could have that'd do any significant damage.

Just where did these fools come from? Did even the ants have fighting spirit there?

Zigmund assessed Zell's stance, seeing no obvious weakness in it. As a martial artist and swordfighter, the finer details of foot and hand placements were not lost on him. A few wisps of smoke rose from his shoulders - the only sign that Lillianna's lightning had done any lasting damage. It had though. Especially around his forearm and fist where his water-blade had once been. He delayed his next action for a moment as he thought about what the Cleric was shouting.

"Fenna! Tell your bird to take the cube and go to Valhiem! If this guy wants it so much he will have to learn to fucking fly!"

"Adam restrain him! Mac arrows! Don't let him move freely! Everyone else gang up on this asshole!"

He couldn't let that blasted bird take the cube, under any circumstance.

And then one of the adventurers gave him an opening.

Clive, already hurt and injured, made a valiant effort to attack Zigmund. Weaponless, but good with his fists, he ran up from behind the elemental ninja and threw a punch. Zigmund heard the footsteps and dodged easily, slipping his own arm under the punch and getting Clive in a sleeper-hold. Clive choked as he clawed at the metal arm now under his chin.

And then with all his might, Zigmund squeezed and then jerked his arms to the sound of a loud crack. He broke Clive's neck. The man died instantly.

Anticipating the shock he would instil in the rest of them, Zigmund threw the lifeless body of Clive at Zell, then rushed at him. With one hand he grabbed his sword, with the other hand he launched a powerful punch that connected with the Englishman's chin and sent him flying.

Without delay, Zigmund stepped toward James and threw a spinning back-kick, that too connected to the head and knocked the Cleric away from Lillianna. Then he reached down for the Lightning mage's satchel and took the prize he'd come for. His primary objective had been completed. Now all that was left was to kill everyone. And with how much they'd hurt his ego, managing to annoy and obstruct him every step of the way... he would enjoy this.

His sword in one hand. Control core in the other. A smile hidden by his visor. He raised a foot over Lillianna's face, about to crush her skull before being interrupted.

"What?" Adam's giant plant roots attacked and he stepped backward, away from Lillianna, in surprise. He slashed one, cutting it easily. "You think these little plants can restrain me?" Then made the mistake of deciding to duel-wield. He magically formed his water-blade once more, so that he could make quick work of the constricting roots. As soon as he did, he spun into a duel wield attack and while his physical enchanted sword went through a root like a hot knife through butter... "Ahhh!"

His aqua-blade dissipated instantly, molecule by molecule quickly absorbed into the plant root and he dropped the Control core. The water-blade was not just a weapon, but his lifeforce too. Such an unexpected, unforeseeable situation that stunned and angered the elemental ninja. Again, he was left with a painful understanding of why Her Majesty wanted these adventurers from another world dead.



Homing in on Lillianna's scream, the true apex predator of The Mazy Hillocks had finally arrived. Those who had lived to tell the tale of him, called him Aurok the Maneater. A giant monstrous centaur, even Joji did not measure tall enough to reach his waist.

He came galloping in from the northeast passage, easily climbing and jumping over where the cliffsides became to narrow for his giant form.



If no one moved the incapacitated Lillianna, then Aurok's charge would trample her to death. Either way he forced Zigmund to give way, the ninja diving aside as Aurok took center stage, unwittingly stood over the cube as he asserted his dominance. Aurok the Maneater lashed out at Joji and Fenna, swiping at one with one clawed hand and aiming to hammer-fist the other into dust with his other.

Zigmund realised he was too hurt and too low on magical reserves to deal with all of them. He needed to reacquire the cube and then retreat so he might recharge and heal. But MacKensie, nearby, was open to attack and with his sword, he was confident he could her take out. That would at least be one less adventurer to deal with, at a later time.

Zigmund dashed towards MacKensie and attacked with a powerful sword strike, so swift that she wouldn't be able to dodge.

Protect.

Melee class. Front line. To defend his party - that was his job.

And yet Clive was murdered right in front of him. Lillianna was at death's door. All because he wasn't strong enough - wasn't fast enough. And now he was left lying in the dirt, yet again.

Zell coughed up blood as he sat up, spat the sanguine onto the ground and wiped his mouth with his sleeve. He was just in time to see the giant of a monster charge past him. Seems the Gods of this universe enjoyed shitting on outsiders, because this was just fucking overkill. He looked around and felt his blood boil when he laid eyes on the ninja. His hands formed fists so tight, his knuckles went white. Spite and fury fuelled him now. He had very little else left in the tank. But it was enough to get up, his breathing heavy as he struggled to control his rage. First, some stupid bastard of a bus driver took everything from him. Credit to Zell; he'd accepted that almost immediately on finding out. But now; This motherfucking tin can was taking the only people he had left here in this world?!

Well fuck that!

He looked across the battlefield, his eyes darting left and right for his sword. When he saw it, he ran for-

The metal ninja's movements drew his attention. Movements toward MacKensie. Zell's eyes flared, his stomach turned, his heart skipped two beats. "No," he murmured breathlessly. "Not her." There was no time to grab his sword. He instantly changed course toward the Ranger, his boots kicking up dirt as he ran. But once more, he was too far away. The ninja was too fast. He could see he wasn't going to make it. Not again! He couldn't bare the thought of being powerless to help again. From the pit of his soul came a gutteral noise that started as a mere shout but grew into a thundering roar.

"NoooooOOOOO-

Reality distorted from sheer desire. Zell mid-sprint disappeared. The very next moment - the very SAME moment - he reappeared right by MacKensie and the ninja, his speed and momentum unchanged, the once-large distance between himself and the Ranger all-but gone. An instant transmission of mind, body and soul to his desired location.

Teleportation.

-OOO!"

He crashed into MacKensie, tackling her and sending them both flying out of the way of the ninja's deadly strike. The sword barely missed Zell's head, cutting nothing more than a few brown hairs that fluttered away in the wind. The two adventurers hit the ground, Zell first, then rolled a few times, over and over eachother until finally coming to a halt with Zell straddled on top of MacKensie. The swordsman's expression was wild and frantic as he stared into her blue eyes, an inch away from her face.

"Y-y-you okay?" he blustered out. No jokes. No dumbass comments. Nothing about lives saved and drinks owed. Nothing but a need for an answer that she wasn't hurt. He rose up a little and looked down to see if she'd been stabbed. No wounds. He let out a breath of relief. "Holy shit, thank fuck," his gratitude came out a wheezing whisper, a smile quivering onto his face as he met her eyes once more.

He kicked himself up into a handstand, then half-flipped onto his feet. Seeing the bare-chested big guy close by to his sword, he shouted across the battlefield. "JOJI!" When his fellow swordsman met his eyes, Zell pointed at, "My sword!"

His fiery anger came back instantly as he looked side-on at the ninja. Joji, reliable as the night-following-day, threw his weapon over. The sword span hilt-over-point towards Zell who was too damn angry to take his burning gaze off the ninja. Pure instinct - he held out his hand high to one side and caught the sword by the hilt perfectly. As stated; Zell didn't think much about anything. He just did stuff.

"I swear on god; if it is the last. Thing. I Fucking do...!" then he turned to face him proper. "...I'm going to cut your fucking head off!"

And with that he rushed the tin can with what may have been the last bit of energy he had left. Stone stance. Slash, thrust, high, low. Combinations, probing for a riposte that he could counter-counter. And again! He would not let up until the ninja stopped him or he decapitated the freak.

This situation was not good, Adam thought, and that was putting it lightly! His teammates were being attacked and Clive was dead. It should have been him! But there was an enemy to trap, so he resolved to do that as well as he possibly could. And somehow, it worked better than expected! To be able to control these plants at this level of detail was unexpected. Just what sort of power did he possess? That would have to be explored later; there was a new subject to focus on, a huge centaur!

Yes, this was a terrifying development. How much danger would the group have to face today? There wasn't time to dwell on that though, only time to act! And Zell did an amazing job of that, saving MacKensie to the red-eyed man's relief. When did he learn how to teleport? Based on his demeanor, Adam guessed only just now; his expression reminded the Druid of how he felt when he learned about his abilities. And in the back of his mind, the man knew that Zell seemed to have feelings for MacKensie like he did, but again; it was time to act, not think.

And Zell's actions were a good model for his own this time; he couldn't fight the ninja head on, but he could help one of his teammates. Using his Druid magic, the man controlled the nearby roots to bring Lillianna to his location quickly and gently. He then created an array of trees around him. No, they wouldn't do much against the enemies in front of him offensively, but if he was attacked the man intended to use these new creations defensively. It wasn't a great James-level strategy, but it would help keep Lillianna safe, and that was great enough for Adam at the moment.

Mac, arrows. Mac, arrows...

After James called the play, MacKensie limped around looking for her crossbow. It fired bolts. Not arrows. A common mistake that everyone seemed to make, but there were more urgent matters on the table, right now. For instance, and most importantly, Lillianna had been stabbed right through her mid-section. Saving her life had become the top priority. Zell clearly felt the same way as he threw caution to the wind and ran right into the lightning storm Lillianna had created. MacKensie paused in her search, terrified for him and Lillianna as it seemed that all of them were being hurt by the lightning. Arrows, Mac! she berated herself.

After being punched for the first time in her life (something that almost made her lose her breakfast,) she almost had her arm pulled out of her socket when she was tossed into the cliffside and she'd injured her knee on the landing. Now she was hobbling in pain, forced to turn her back to the action as she laid eyes on the weapon she'd lost earlier. It was lay right by the corpse of the Alpha Female. She retrieved it in time to turn around and see Clive meet his end at the hands of the steel-clad warrior. She gasped, frozen stiff at the sight.

Was this the end? Would they all die here? When the powerful ninja stole the cube from Lillianna's satchel, MacKensie wanted to cry. This thing was just too strong.

And then Adam's magical plants came out of nowhere and saved Lillianna, before forcing the enemy to drop the cube. It was a small victory, but it meant so much. It meant that the ninja could still be hurt, even without Lillianna's lightning powers. It meant there was still a chance so long as they didn't give up! What a splash of cold water to remind MacKensie of all of her friends valiant efforts so far. Joji's unarmed challenge. Fenna's aerial soaring swoop-

"ROOOOOAAARRRRR!!!"

MacKensie's rising determination grinded to a rough halt as she tilted her head back to marvel at this giant monster that charged into the fray and stopped right in front of her. Even her mind fell silent as she stood statue-like, just staring at the thing. What on earth was it? The horns, the teeth, the claws. She wasn't sure she could even imagine a creature so horrifying. To be so awestruck on the battlefield was a deadly mistake and the ninja sought to make her pay the cost. She turned to the sound of rapid footsteps and saw she'd been ambushed with no time to even blink. With all the commotion of the giant monster, and the ninja right in her face, she could barely hear another voice shouting. The sword of the ninja started coming down...

It's over.

She expected it to be a quick death - maybe feel something sharp just before nothingness. But no. She felt nothing of the sort. Arms wrapped around her as she was thrown to the floor, tumbling and rolling to a halt with...

"Zell."

She found herself and the Englishman holding eachother, nose to nose, and her brain realised exactly what had just happened.

"Y-y-you okay?" he blustered out.

"I... I think so," she stammered. Then said more decisively, "Yes."

He let out a breath of relief. "Holy shit, thank fuck."

She whispered a short chuckle as disblief became appreciation that she was still alive. As Zell got up off her, she lifted her feet to roll slightly backwards, then flicked her entire body in such a motion that she popped up onto her feet. Dropping a bolt into her crossbow, she didn't even realise she was mimmicking Zell as she stared the ninja down with nothing but vengaence on her mind. Eyes locked on her enemy, she stepped forward to stand beside her friend as he got his weapon back.

The promise from the Englishman needed no additional words from MacKensie. He'd said everything that needed to be said. And when he burst into action, MacKensie was in syncronization. She rushed too, firing a bolt at the ninja, her raw speed taking the lead. She faked a lunge at the enemy, then dashed left out of the way of Zell who engaged, then she lunged from a different angle, spinning into a precise dagger strike before dashing back out of the way.

Quick reloads, point-blank shots and spinning dagger attacks, in and out from a fresh angle each time - in perfect sync with not just Zell's attacks, but his determination and fury too.

Her vision went white, even as the pain cut deep into her core. Yet this wasn't just mere 'pain', but something else she'd brought on herself. Searing, white hot, intense, excruciating, and frankly unbearable pain, all coursing through her very being like lifeblood and down through her feet as it burned out the bottom of her walking shoes and the smell of char and burning flesh and material erupted into the air like a horrible idea for a stink bomb. The electricity tried to scurry along and out of the situation, like a frightened mole seeking to escape a predator, finding itself burrowing down into the welcoming comfort of the very grounding element that was the earth below her and the mechanical water-ninja's feet. All of this even as her muscles froze in position from the constant electrical shock coursing through them that kept them in place, a common thing to happen for one being electrocuted as she'd once learned, and her vocal chords tore into the air with a rending screech and wail of a scream that seemed to well out-shout whatever they'd heard roaring out from afar before...even as it made her very vocal chords run themselves horribly raw in the process.

And then it was suddenly gone.

Like a heavy stone, she felt her body torn from its position as the current was interrupted for a moment when Zell kicked away the cyborg and her body collapsed under its own weight in the man's arms. She was barely conscious enough to stop the channeling of her magic, mostly as her body couldn't even manage that much anymore at this venture if she were to be honest. At the same time, a vague and fuzzy line of subconsious thought recognized the burn marks seared all over the mage's body and face as damage caused along the way. Even her clothes had some holes and burned or scorched spots on them as Zell would fall over and James would take her from the other man's hands.

Yet still, her vision was barely anything but a blur.

Her body was anything but able to move or walk on its own at that right now, drained of energy and still suffering from a now somewhat-burnt and semi-charred stab wound that had also hit a lung for that matter. What it had done in sealing some of the smaller damage around the wound's entrance was by virtue of an impromptu and unintentional self-cauterization of sorts that she'd managed to do to herself, however, was still nothing before the gaping bleeding wound and the damage done to her otherwise by this point. At the same time, she fought for life as her mind sought to drift off and a strange but oddly familiar numbness began to take hold in her limbs even beyond their status of an utter lack of energy to move already.

By the time her vision began to somewhat clear in the most general sense, she could at least make out the blurry outline of James' face. Then the movement of boodies being uppercut away or kicked to the side. Then the blur of something over her head, before more movement of some brown and green stuff...as far as she could tell anyway.

"ROOOOOAAARRRRR!!!"

At this point she didn't even have the energy to care, though in her mind she could imagine the smirk her face couldn't form as she imagined the ninja getting crushed into a paste by whatever it was. Not that she'd live long enough to get there, but at least she could manage to get the last dying laugh, right? Maybe. Perhaps it would even just be a pittance made up in her head to make her feel better about dying.

...Heh. Dying. At least the first time it was swift and instant, a clean kill on the part of the wind she had been assuming. Otherwise she'd have remembered more about it if she'd died there bleeding or something. But no, that had been reserved for the SECOND death. An honest mistake on her part, she couldn't see the future or anything....or even physically see much of anything, for that matter, as she tried to keep awake with what fading energy she had left at least.

Yet even as her mind wandered more and more into a denser, foggy haze, something would click in it eventually as well in those moments.

'Hah...well, if that ghostly man was of any indication with that 'Quinity' comment and its potential context perhaps there is someone watching us right now. Someone-s? Deities. Or this world. Or something.'

There had been magic here and so forth, but now things had her more than a little curious at least. Maybe she'd meet one after dying again, get to learn a bit more about things about the afterlife in this world. Maybe she'd wake up back home on an operating table, sent back home to die and pass on there. Ultimately it was worth calling out from her mind for the sake of seeing if this world could surprise her more.

'Hey you...death? Not sure if you've a name here yet, and haven't had much the chance to ask anyone either. A god of death? Goddess of death? A being born from the planet as part of nature? Ah, whatever you are I'm here and calling out to you on what is probably my deathbed I think.

I'm certainly no cleric, the group already has one, but I'd love to learn more about the afterlife here or strike some agreement for something coool if you're willing. Maybe get this ghostly guy who tried to help me out of here so he can at least get out of this dreary place to have died, if the first thing isn't permissible for an out-worlder like me or you're feeling generous. Perhaps people might even ask you for miracles or something else, like saving their lives or go about attempting to offer to serve you in exchange for being able to talk to a dead relative. I don't know, really, but I figure might as well ask out there while I have any chance to do so.

Maybe you won't answer me, or are not inclined to the random rambling of any random dying mortal. If so, that's fine. I suppose this in part is just me being also somewhat scared of dying as well. Scared of being alone...again.'

Alone. But even at worst, she had her final diatribe or ramble out into the void. A prayer some tutelary deity she had no idea if they existed, local or not, that maybe would give light to something in her last moments. A curiosity she wished to experience right before passing, if she could, before anything else occured beyond this point. But the numbess only seemed to deepen as time passed, whatever the heck was going on at this point for the others and herself. She couldn't really tell anymore.

At least she'd have her own thoughts to give her company at the end, even if they were really a dying prayer tossed out there into the void.

'But hey, if you could at least just help save the skin of these honest-to-goodness loveable idiots I would be grateful at least. A bit more...at peace. I'll even help hunt...that Witch Queen from...beyond the grave...if it'd be of any help to you.

Ah...its suddenly getting even harder to...think...to make words. A prayer even...as I suppose...this...is. Sorry...for...maybe wasting your......time...'

@xenon@Saiyan@Teyao

@xenon @Crusader Lord

Joji Yamazaki

Joji got hit by the double jab from the strange looking ninja. Smirking as blood was flowing down the side of his mouth. “Nice hit, but your gonna have to do better than that.” He was reminded of the many fights he would get into while alive. Countering by trying to punch him before faking out and kicking the ninja in the side. But his punch was countered before he could even go for the kick, being sent onto his ass. “Fuck.” Cursing as he quickly tried to get back onto his feet.

Getting underhand when Zigmund was distracted by Fenna’s falcon. Punching Zigmund as hard as he could with his fist. Wanting to break the ninja’s mask. Watching in amazement as the ninja turned his body into water to try and escape their attacks. Running over toward Zigmund and Lillianna trying to stop him from getting the cube. “Oi, we’re not done yet.” He tried once again to attack him, a flurry of punches coming toward Zigmund. His rage was building as he saw one of his teammates being killed by Zigmund. His face was twisted with anger as he felt guilty for not saving that person.

His punches started to become much faster, and before long he pulled out his sword. Now cutting widely at the ninja. “Anata no shinda, kono rokudenashi (Your dead, you bastard).” Joji was trying at least to disable the ninja so the others could kill him. Suddenly stopping his attack when he noticed the minotaur appearing.

“Anata no minikui mazāfakkā. (Your one ugly mother fucker).” Joji threw Zell's sword that was laying on the floor near him. Dodging the attack of the centaur, pulling out his sword and countering by trying to slash at the creature's legs.

Fuck is always the head!

His vision swarmed, it wasn't the first time he received a head injury but that didn't mean that he developed some sort of resistance towards them, a concussion was nasty damage that couldn't just be swept under the rug and forgotten like that, it took extensive medical care and continuous monitoring to make sure it didn't develop into something more severe, Vero always said that concussions were always a factor to look out for because they were easily missed if no-

FUCK! he was doing it again!

"Focus, focus."

He was on his back having rolled after being kicked by the ninja wannabe, he managed to pass Zell's defense by Clive was dead Deal with it later -He managed to pass Zell defense but Adam managed to restrain him and then Thing showed up, some kind of malformed centaur by its looks then-

"MacKenzie, its going for Mackenzie!"

He watched with horror how the assassin started sprinting in MacKenzie's direction, he was going to kill her just like he killed Cli Deal with it later -only for Zell to appear out of nowhere and make them both miss the strike by a few inches. At once he felt some tension leaving his core as the both of them lunged for the ninja in synchrony. Said tension returned with a vengeance as he remembered Lilliana's current state.

Looking around he caught a glimpse of Adam utilizing his plant control to make the roots drag Lilliana to an improvised defense at the same time that Joji decided to distract the Centaur.

Getting on four he wasted no time using his light spell against the beast to provide some advantage to Joji and making a signal for Arthur to help him, those two had the greatest chance of bringing down the thing just as Mac and Zell worked well against the Ninja. Once the spell was on its way he crawled as fast as he could towards Lilliana.

Reaching her fallen form he gave a nod to Adam, they would depend on him to keep any threats away during the process, once he was sure the other man was prepared he started to get to work but paused. There was something... strange about her, a feeling similar to the one he felt whenever he cast Undaya Blessing but much more formless, sort of reaching towards something but there appeared to be something missing, a critical piece that didn't let the, the conexion solidify. He shook his head, whatever it was it didn't matter, what was important was treating her injuries as fast as possible to grant her the possibility of surviving.

As quickly as possible he grabbed a small knife from his pack and removed all elements of clothing obstructing the injuries, the good news was that the stab wound was a clean cut, with no jagged edges or hacked-away pieces, just a direct hit that entered and exited the body, it looked somewhat similar to how the diagrams in Vero books described a stab wound but cleaner if he was to judge, seems the Ninja ability made the blade wound easier to treat, ironically enough. The bad news was that all the lighting that she discharged provoked light burns around her torso He could sympathize Not now!, they didn't appear life-threatening so he gave priority to the puncture. As he analyzed he never stopped talking in a clear voice, Vero was always adamant that keeping a patient conscious was up there in the list of needs, alongside not making things worse or fucking up.

"Hey, HEY!, Look at me, everything is going to be alright, you are going to be running around before you even notice"

Time to start.

Rolling her so she laid on her side he started talking "So Lily -can I call you Lily?- Great! So Lily how do you feel now that you can do magic stuff?" First thing, clear the entry and exit with a small cloth and some water from his canteen, it will get dirty during the process but better if it is blood than dirt "Is jarring isn't it? Suddenly knowing stuff" He almost flinched while analyzing the wound, it was directly under the heart and it missed the lungs by a small margin but a little lower and it would have performed her liver which would have been a death sentence "I sort of imagine shelves with books and each book is a spell, how do you imagine them?" Keep her distracted, she is already becoming paler but the bleeding doesn't appear to be quite as severe as before, clothing must be in effect then.

Rummaging through his pack he pulled a needle, some tread, and some of the medicine he received from the Assistant back in Homas, none of it is what he should be using, the needle and the tread are not sterilized and the antiseptic paste is not as strong as he would have liked for this type of injury but a beggar couldn't be a chooser "Things here are a lot different from how they were before, aren't they? Speaking of, what did you use to do before all of this?" He started bending the needle and tying the tread, then he cleaned the blood once more "Hey how do you think the city will look once we reach it? I bet it looks exactly like Homas but bigger" Entry or exit? Which one to focus on first? "I think the thing I look forward the most to is a bed and a shower, what about you?" Exit, is slightly more open than the other, using the needle he started suturing the wound, one stitch, tie it, cut the tread, clean the wound and start again. Over and over he continued making sure to never stop talking while patching her up "Now that I think about it, do you think they sell your favorite food in Valheim? I doubt they sell zacahuil or tamales but I could settle for some tacos" Suture is done, its time to apply the paste, it will hopefully drive away any risk of infection "Thinking about it, where are you from? I know Mac is French, Joji is Japanese and I think Zell is English so counting my Mexican ass we are a really varied bunch, you seem American or Canadian, did I guess right?" Bandages, he needed bandages! Wher- His shawl! Controlled movements untied his shawl from his shoulders and he proceeded to tear it into a single strip of cloth with the knife, then he fastened the strip around Lilliana as an improvised bandage. Once he make sure the bandage was snug he tied the end and invoked his healing spell two times in a row, he wasn't sure if casting it more would make it better but he was not ready to take any chances.

The moment the spell settled on the bandages he fell on his ass and took deep breaths, the stress finally getting to him but even so never once did he stop talking.

"You are going to be okay, everything is going to be fine, you will recover, it's okay..."

Perhaps the person he was trying to convince was himself

After kicking Zigmund with her boots, Fenna landed on the ground, but not how she had anticipated. She had landed many times on sand after jumping with a long stick, but colliding with something before landing was something she had never done before and she needed a moment to get a firm footing. As she turned to face the ninja, he aimed a roundhouse kick at her and she stumbled back in an attempt to avoid being hit, falling down in the process.

She got up as quickly as she could and watched him liquefy and slide away. "Water?" She spat as she squinted at him. "I'll dike you up and turn you into a fucking polder!"

There was no way she would let some body of water win. Before she could move in for an attack, Lilliana got stabbed and she shouted out the mage's name. The shock of seeing one of them being impaled by a sword made her lower the tip of her weapon and stare as the realization they could actually get injured and die fully sank in. Moments later lightning erupted. Everything happened so fast.

Then she heard James. Her falcon, right, she could carry the cube. First she located her falcon, then tried to locate the cube she wanted the falcon to grab. Would her falcon understand a command in her language? How could she let the falcon know the exact object that needed to be taken wawy? It took time to train birds of prey. Pointing to Lilliana could mean anything, and be mistaken for a command to attack.

Before she could figure out the exact order she would give, Clive died and his lifeless body was used as a throwing weapon against Zell. She wanted to shout something, but words got stuck in her throat. She had fought together with Clive, and talked with him during the travel. She had considered him a friend. That damned body of water, who now also had the cube. The sting of grief turned to anger. There was no way she would let him get away with it. Thankfully Adam's plants made him drop the cube. Now it was up for grabs and she got ready to send her falcon to retrieve it when a roar made her freeze. What the hell was that?

The roots moved the incapacitated Lillina out of its way, but the cube remained between the legs of some kind of centaur from hell. A strike came down, but her falcon flew in to grab the arm with her talons. It wouldn't stop the attack, just delay it for a second as the beast pulled his arm free, long enough for Fenna to duck and roll under the large beast to grab the cube before it was trampled and get to the other side of the beast. She threw it up for her falcon to grab and shouted "Go!" pointing away from the fight, before turning and readying her spear so she could assist Joji taking it out.