Fleuri Jodeau

It took Fleuri a moment to process what had just happened to him. One moment he was listening to Erion speaking of the second challenge, next thing he knew, the knight had just been caught within the blast of a spell, same as Fanilly, and he was pretty sure it had just vaporized both of them. It was a good thing that there was no dying in this world.

It would appear that their next obstacle had arrived, and their next challenge had been announced.

Get to the top of the hill, try not to get blasted, seems straightforward enough.

Clearly this would be a higher-risk task than the previous challenge, and it seemed likely that at least some of the knights would be felled, potentially multiple times. sure there was cover on the slopes, but that wouldn't stop that mage. His utter lack of countermeasures to magic aside from trying to not get hit was a bit of a frustrating limitation.

As the other knights expressed their ideas and concerns to Fanilly, Fleuri looked up at the two figures on the hill. The presence of the second potential adversary up there may very much complicate this challenge. According to Gertrude, the other figure was a demon warrior of considerable strength.

"There is one other thing to consider, Captain," he chimed in to Fanilly. "The mage isn't the only foe we have to worry about. That demon warrior up there that Gertrude mentioned, I doubt she'll simply stand there and let us approach unimpeded."

@VitaVitaAR

Gerard Segremors

"If we're taking volunteers, I think I should be on duty for Krysia." came the even-toned rejoinder from the opposite way Renar had come, as Gerard ambled back into the main mass, having begun his own loop a few minutes behind and uncovered nothing he hadn't already heard Renar lay out. Luckily, the time he'd lagged had earned him the privilege of the pauper maid's help, if only to justify her inaction— They now had proper identities regarding the two figures judging them from on high. The mage's name was familiar from... somewhere. He couldn't place it, but it felt like home. This wasn't the occasion to turn that over for more than the walk back.

"I put a lot of my time here in beneath Sir Cyrus," he explained. "And had a track record of squaring up against bigger, stronger enemies already. Jeremiah, the Demonbreaker, so on. You've seen most of it yourself. When she comes into play, I ought to be able to leverage that and tie her up a while. I've learned much about keeping myself alive against overwhelming power."

He glanced to the side, at the lounging pearlescent blondes.

"Lady Gertrude doesn't seem to believe she can do anything, and she was the one that trained with those two the most. I'll take that as a sign I've long odds of knocking the big girl off the board totally, if any. So I can't promise that. But I do believe I'm a good bet to intercept and stall. I can adjust to the range and power coming back at me. Hang around if she connects once or twice. Provided we can ensure her movement..."

He bowed his head.

"I believe this is the value I bring to the table, ma'am. I'll go where you send me."

Left unsaid, as an order from many superiors throughout the centuries contained here, was the fact that she could afford to burn him on this.

@Eisenhorn@VitaVitaAR@Octo@Psyker Landshark@Crimson Paladin

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@Octo

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As the rest of the group deliberated over their options and placement, Fionn stood off to the side, the fingers of one hand drumming against his thigh while the other still held his sword loosely—now returned to its normal size. Short of 'be fast about it' there wasn't much else he could supply to the planning; much like what Gerard was suggesting, he was more suited to fighting than he was to any other strategy at king of the hill. Unconsciously, his hand shot forwards, grabbing Gertrude by the wrist before she could condescendingly pat their captain's head.

"None of that," he chided, resisting the fleeting urge to crush down on her wrist for her continuing disrespect. Or to say a few words and grow out claws to cut into her pale skin like one of Fiadh's Dernyar cousins in the mountains back home; no, that would be too much, especially after she had just been helpful in the fight against the Talderians. Claws, though...

Giving into protective instincts like the Senyar did or being as belligerent as a Dernyar knocked off a cliff may not be the solution to every problem, but a bit of primal savagery every now and then never hurt things too much either. Fionn didn't release his grasp, although he did relax it considerably, facing Gertrude—for once—with a smile.

"I might have an idea for how you can help after all. Think you and that broom would be able to carry me?"

"Sir Fleuri brings up a fair point, but the demon can still only be in one place at a time." Renar stated, taking the new factor into account as he strategized.

"An even split of forces seems best. Conventional thought would have the mage up there place the demon to guard her weakest point, that being the rear approach with the blind spot. Of course, there could be something else in play should she not take that avenue, but we can't sit here and deliberate what-ifs forever."

With that said, he turned to Gerard, something in his words giving Renar pause.

"Look at that bolt she sent down as a warning shot. You think your body can that, even once, much less twice? No, adjust accordingly. If you're going to be on decoy duty, assume any of her blows will kill you. You'll last longer up there that way."

@HereComesTheSnow @Crimson Paladin

Gertrude just... wasn't going to help?! She just attempted to pat her on the head and be done with it?! What... how... that---!

No, no, she couldn't allow herself to become distracted by that.

Fanilly took a deep breath to clear her head.

Her knights, of course, seemed to make similar points to what she'd already been considering. They needed to split their forces, but not too heavily. Sir Gerard, while noble, seemed to be taking quite an extreme stance of taking on their opponent's demonic companion entirely alone. No matter how capable he may be, and how resistant to serious injury he was, she couldn't agree to such a thing in good conscience.

Despite the fact that death held little meaning in this place, that didn't mean that they shouldn't treat these challenges as such. If this was meant to be preparation for facing a powerful mage in the normal world, then that meant that they had to approach it no differently then they would if death were still a real threat.

"I can't allow you to face the demon alone, Sir Gerard, not if we are to treat this as a real battle. But as Sir Fleuri says, it's likely you shall face her either way," she replied, before clearing her throat.

"I do believe splitting into more than two teams would be spreading ourselves too thin, so I agree with Sir Renar. With that in mind, I will be dividing you between the southern approach and the eastern approach."

The southern approach was the one she suspected to be most likely guarded by the demon. It was the one with the most cover, and the easiest climb, so it stood to reason that she was using a powerful physical defender to cover what was the easiest route up.

While the northern approach was a massive blindspot, the climb was also the most difficult, so she had ruled it out fairly quickly. Of the two flanks, the eastern flank had rougher terrain that made it somewhat more difficult but also provided some level of cover in the event of another spell.

"Sir Gerard, Sir Fleuri, and Sir Fionn," she addressed the knights in turn, "You shall approach from the South. I suspect that you'll face the demon, but provided you can keep her occupied then you will have achieved your duty even if you cannot pass her. Sir Renar, Sir Rolan, and myself will take the eastern approach, and focus on evading the mage's spells above all else."

She took a deep breath as her gaze returned to Lady Gertrude.

Persuading her to be of assistance felt like it would be a battle in and of itself, but the maid uniform-wearing girl did respond to flattery.

"A-as for Lady Gertrude, I was hoping she would demonstrate her considerable talents in overcoming a challenge helmed by what is clearly a powerful mage," Fanilly began, hesitating somewhat as she hoped she chose the right words, "Certainly, her... her incredible craft would be useful."

Gertrude's role, provided she actually helped, would be a simple one.

To unleash as many ranged spells as swiftly as possible, with the goal of releasing the widest spread of projectiles as possible. Naturally, she didn't think a mage like their opponent would be defeated by such an assault.

But she couldn't simply ignore them, either, could she? The more time she spent defending against a magical smokescreen, the less time she had to prevent them from reaching the top.

The broad consensus among the gathered knights was to split up and attack from multiple flanks at once. The Captain organized things more thoroughly. No one would be making an attempt on the climb, a part of him was disappointed to hear that but it was quickly suppressed. The bold, arguably foolhardy, volunteering by Sir Gerard was wisely not pursued. So it would be three and three, since Rolan was not going to hold his breath that anyone was going to convince Gertrude to assist, even by prodding her ego. He considered the groups and their taskings, continuing to size up his opening shot all the while. There was quite a lovely small rock at the point the hill reached its peak, just falling short of a directed attack, which would work wonders in scattering the smoke upwards and outwards. Even if it only lasted a second before being blown back or dispersed it would give them a second to begin moving. As for the groups, Gerard, Fleuri, and Fionn would tackle the route likely defended by the daemoness. Gerard on the front, with the other two on the flank, they should be able to hold the creature's attention well enough, maybe even advance. He would have to keep a sharp eye on their flank in case an opportunity to interfere made itself available. He did have a knack for ruining perfectly good fights.

That left him paired with the Captain and Sir Renar. Renar was smart, adaptable to changing battlefield conditions, he had observed as much during his actions against the Talderian knights. How fast he was on his feet, however, was another matter that remained to be seen, but he would not disparage the man for being the spitting image of a proper Knight. The Captain was faster on her feet, in comparison, and had proven herself in the melee before. Fortune willing, she would be able to keep up better, but as far as Rolan was concerned, he would end up leading the way. He wore the least armor, not a scrap of metal on him, and travelled light to begin with. Problem being, taking hits was, frankly, not an option. Even more so than normal, staring down magic capable in a siege. Regardless, they had stood around long enough, and a real threat wouldn't have let them stand around, scout, and plan to this extent. It was time to get this underway, and he knew just how he would do so.

"As you say Captain, I suggest that whoever is being targeted goes to ground and the other two leap past, so even defensively we advance. I'll lead the initial way, and fortune willing create an opening. Long strides and swift feet, Roses." With that, he snapped the crossbow to his shoulder and fired, having spent the entire discussion sizing up his shot he shouldn't have needed any time to aim and give away his intent more than necessary. The bolt, caustic smoke vial lodged in place of its tip, was aimed to shatter right in front of the duo above rather than on them directly, but Rolan did not wait for the shot to land. He bolted, low and fast, for the eastern approach. He was reloading in motion, already planning out where he would take cover from the no doubt impending magical strikes, listening for the Captain and Sir Renar behind him so he didn't evade in a way to bait the impending counter attacks right into their paths. If Gertrude decided to be goaded into helping, well, all the better to keep the opposing mage busy, but he wasn't planning on having her help. Let her prove him wrong.

"I hear and obey, Captain." Renar nodded, already eyeing up the eastern ascent. In truth, he would have taken the risk on the northern approach had he been giving the orders. The difficulty of the climb was outweighed by the massive blind spot it left in the mage's defenses, and they were knights. The majority of them should be physically fit enough to handle such a climb. Ah, well. He could still see where Fanilly was coming from with this decision either way.

They started the climb, and Renar gave a small smirk of approval beneath his helm at Sir Rolan's opening gambit. Smoke. Good call. As he climbed, Renar calculated the angles: everyone taking cover wasn't viable. It'd just leave the mage to target all of it. No, best to keep her attention occupied and constantly shifting angles.

One hand came off the rock and palmed his belt, drawing a throwing knife that Renar hurled straight upwards at the summit of the climb before he shifted sideways, immediately leaving the angle from which he'd lobbed the blade. Through the smoke, the mage wouldn't be able to see his sudden side swap, and had a better than not chance of wasting her time by retaliating where he'd been, and not where he was.

From here on, it was an endurance test: how deep into his and Sir Rolan's bag of tricks could they go before the mage wised up and managed to take them out?

Fleuri Jodeau

The Captain's plan placed Fleuri at the south face. It had plenty of cover (or at least concealment- he wasn't sure if anything could stop that witch's magic if she put enough power behind it), and not a difficult climb, but Fanilly believed that would be where the demon would be.

"It sounds like you'll get to face the demon after all, Sir Gerard," Fleuri remarked to his fellow knight as he readied his sword. He advanced towards the foot of the southern ascent, taking careful note of the cover that they'd have. With a demon standing between them and the mage, it'd probably be up to the other knights to reach the top of the hill, but the challenge of facing a powerful demonic warrior appealed far more to Fleuri than running a gauntlet of magical projectiles. Not that the mage wouldn't fire on them, of course- for all they knew, the demon might have immunities or resistances to certain magics that'd allow the Hundi spellcaster to sling spells in her direction without worrying about wounding her giant protector in the crossfire.

"We'd best get moving, we don't want to keep them waiting."

@The Otter@HereComesTheSnow

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@Octo @VitaVitaAR

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"Wait, captain," Fionn interjected, turning from Gertrude back to Fanilly. The others already moved to make their approaches, but whether staggered or all at once would make little difference in the plan, so he didn't feel particularly rushed. "I think Gertrude and I can take advantage of one of those other options a bit, I just need...ach, what's the word..."

He released Gertrude's wrist, flexing his fingers as he mouthed out a few different words, before finally settling on—"Anguīnās."

He grimaced as he felt the flesh of his hands rapidly shift and morph under his command, nails sprouting out into hardened claws that should be more than able to dig into the cliff side or grant an even-surer grip on the easier climb. While it wasn't particularly painful, it wasn't an experience he particularly enjoyed either.

"Right. Going to have to think about a better way to phrase that one in the future, I reckon, but still! If Gertrude can carry me and get me started a ways off the ground on that cliff, I'm a good climber and this'll just make it easier. Especially if she knows a good illusion to make me look like Gretchen until she drops me off, that way it'll just look like she's flying around to scout and harass them like you're already planning."

Gertrude clicked her tongue in disapproval as once again Fionn interposed himself between her and the target of her teasing. She glowered at the man and, for a moment, considered immolation. However, now was neither the time nor the place. If Gertrude wanted out of here, it would be in her best interest to play along at least a little. She was selfish and intelligent enough to understand this, so she wouldn't push the matter.

"I made this broom," Gertrude replied with a growl, "and it's powered by my own magic, so yes, it's strong enough to haul an extra hunk of tin."

She knew where Fionn was going with this, and imagined that it had the possibility of going very badly for him. But it could also go well, which meant getting out of here sooner. Honestly, kind of a win-win. She turned from him, and looked down at the captain. She, at least, seemed to be willing to play Gertrude's game. Watching Fanilly fumble her words looking for ways to flatter her was very refreshing. Gertrude smiled.

"Well, if the cute little mistress implores me so... how am I to refuse?"

When Fionn released her, Gertrude took her broom side-saddle.

"It's true Gisela is a fantastic mage, but if this lot can distract Krysia half as well as they think they can, I might be able to keep the Hundi in check. I have a few advantages of my own."

She turned, once again, to Fionn.

"No illusion magic here. My repertoire is more killing and self-preservation than trickery. We'll just have to make our move after the others start climbing and the attention is focused on them."

She tapped the spot next to her on the broom. If Fionn acquiesced, she'd drop him off once it was clear that Gisela's attention was on the others. From there, she'd harry the Hundi as best she could. Gisela had a lot of advantages, but Gertrude could cheat. The composition of her catalyst made it so that her casting was all but guaranteed to be faster, and Gisela would be working with divided attention.

Not to mention, Gretchen would be hanging back seemingly harmless. She'd be able to complete some chants, and then Gertrude would surprise the Hundi with a fully-charged spell or two.

Gerard Segremors

He weathered the various concerns thrown his way with little fanfare or argument, only offering an opaque, game smile. To begin with, it was a pretty bold proclamation by every metric, even his own— not hard to believe that the Captain wouldn't want to invite the idea of such drastic measures being necessary to begin with. Granted, he'd not said he meant to go it alone...

But really, who would bringing that up be fooling? He was a poor liar, his tone gave away a lot that his words neglected. Probably best he stay that way, at least for now.

If anything, this proved her building confidence— no potential sacrifice plays necessary. Doesn't matter if I can hold out. The Roses can do it clean.

"The more the merrier. Consider it done, Captain." he nodded swiftly, before rolling out the shoulder of his sword arm as he made his way over, marching up to flank Fleuri. Fionn seemed to be hanging behind, deliberating something, bothering Gertrude, Gerard wasn't sure what, but he'd catch up if he meant to. For now, he was focused on the task ahead.

"How fitting that it's the two of us hunting her down, on a bright sunny day." he replied to his compatriot, golden eyes flickering between brush, upturned rock, channel carved by the torrent of released mana, felled tree. Behind them, he began to chart a path— the more ground they could chew up before Rolan's imminent smokescreen cleared, the more immediate the threat they presented would be. Get close enough, and they'd force the hands of the pair on high, one way or another. "Speaks to the burgeoning poet in my soul."

A cloud from high above appeared to land upon the hilltop. Enough wisecracks.

"Let's move." he breathed, darting up the slope towards the first of many boulders, large enough to hide his person.

For a moment, the hill stayed quiet under the cloud of smoke—then three blurs breached the cloud. One, rising up skyward only to arc down again, had a metallic sheen. The other was a pair of radiant orbs, drifting gently down the hillside. Preceding them all in arrival was a sudden, brief gale, then a second gust; sorcery overcoming the alchemical cover and once again providing a clear view.

Then the blur landed, earth shaking, and the demon stood before Fanilly, a grin on her red face and armour bubbling into its proper shape as the wings folded away. In her hands there was no weapon, just a red light flickering around her gauntlets. Yet, the towering figure swung all the same and the light responded accordingly, taking the form of a lengthy spear. The next blow as she closed in came from a curved sword, then an axe before she stepped aside—

And at the top of the hill, a purple figure had aimed, hidden from view by the demon, and the lightning was already coming. As for the warrior, she had already turned to Renar, glow shifting with her thoughts.

Not that this left the covered side perfectly free: the rolling spheres seemed to be a source for attacks themselves, firing out in all directions as they descended. Not a finely-aimed barrage, yet one that could eventually destroy their cover all the same, and seemed to be trying to make up for the lack of visibility through volume of fire and multiple sources. At the least, the overall size—hard as it was to make out through the glare—of each was steadily decreasing, and they would reach the bottom of the hill past them all at some stage. Although, that would leave them particularly exposed while they moved directly past.

At least Gertrude could relax in not having been targeted yet.

Although, the Hundi's eyes still tracked her and Fionn's ascent.

At the sight of the metallic blur launching itself upwards out of the cloud, Rolan found a single thought crossing his mind as the arc began carrying the blur back down towards the knights, the caustic smoke doing far less than he would have preferred, again, as it was cast away with a stiff breeze that was conjured. He caught himself muttering under his breath as he kept moving, though he was moving for a covered position rather than simply bolting further upwards with no regard to what was incoming.

"Fuck..."

Positioning himself in cover, he looked to where the daemoness had slammed down, cutting him off from the Captain and Sir Renar while the magic intensified. No, now was not the time to think, as he snapped the crossbow to his shoulder and fired. He wasn't aiming center mass for the daemoness, he expected her to be fast and smart enough to know he would react to her landing as well and evade. Hell, maybe she was expecting it and deliberately positioned to allow a missed shot to strike his allies. That's why he aimed low, aiming for her knee, specifically one that, on a miss, would harmlessly slam into the ground instead of risk injuring his allies. Still, this was a juncture he had to resolve quickly. The daemoness was the kind of threat he was not going to be of much use dealing with, not in a fair fight, and right now he had to assume the original plan had been scattered to the wind just like his smoke screen had been. That meant adapting, and that meant making for the top of the hill. Sir Renar had the right idea with attacking the mage, though the throwing knife was likely more a distraction than a true attack. Rolan was not going to allow himself the same luxury as he bolted up along the more sparsely covered path, trusting the daemoness to Sir Renar and the Captain.

It was likely one of the other Knights would peel off to engage the daemoness as well, Sir Gerard given the previous volunteering to face the daemoness, leaving two knights for the more guarded path, and Rolan alone for the sparser path. Not ideal, but considering that the daemoness could slaughter him in a melee with little effort he was only going to slow the others down dealing with her. No, he focused on the original plan, lead the way up even if no one was following him. Only one of them had to reach the top, and with two remaining on the other path had better odds splitting attention than he did. But he could work with that, as he finished reloading and began trying his absolute best to land a killing shot on the hundi on the top of the hill as he bounded upwards, only pausing to line up a shot when he was weaving through the veritable hail of magic coming down on them. At worst, he would get her attention and focus long enough to create openings, at absolute worst the daemoness may take offense to his efforts long enough to leap up after him, buying the knights time to reorganize and advance.

And here was the kicker. Gerard would be disappointed at this turn of events, at least. Renar took the precious few seconds the demon spent on Fanilly to analyze it as best he could before he made a move. Constantly shifting weapons. That would be irritating. The principles of armed combat still applied in this case, though: watch the foe's wrists, not their weapon. The shifting was just a distraction to unbalance people.

The demon shifted to him next, and Renar savagely grinned beneath his helm. Perfect. Better him than the crossbowman, at least. He had one move before she managed to close the distance against him, and he spent it on pulling out a vial of pocket sand and hurling the crushed contents towards the demoness's eyes. As the sand flew high, Renar went low, bringing his poleaxe around to try to hook the axe head behind one of his foe's ankles and trip her off her feet.

He didn't have to win. He only needed to keep her distracted long enough for someone to reach the summit. And besides, if this worked, it'd be extremely gratifying to see one of his favored tactics work against a demon of all things.

Gerard Segremors

For a moment, something flashed on Segremors's steel-cast countenance to confirm the suspicions of all present, as the demoness appeared not at the fore he and Fleuri presented, but instead atop the Captain, Renar, and Rolan. It tasted of acrid, sour disgruntlement, the ash of a promptly torched understanding of the proceedings. He'd been gathering courage for this, had willingly volunteered to shoulder it and prove his growth to not only them, but to himself—

And then the bombardment came, and he bit it down as he dove behind the cover of the next boulder. Spheres of arcane force bloosomed out from the points of impact like ripples on placid water, the unfurling petals of so many sunflowers close to home— and what was more, those that didn't whizz past drove thunderclaps through the back of his surcoat, as they hammered into the upturned stone. The two Reonites had very different levels of schooling to compare between them, but both could intuit clear as day— hunkering down here and waiting out wasn't in the cards.

Still dealing with overwhelming force. There was a tempo to follow, he could feel it hitting his back through the soon-to-be-rubble. As the orbs rolled on into his field of view, they shrank in tune with the distance... and maintained their course, and their angle.

It dawned on him swiftly.

"There's a pattern here..." he muttered, chancing a peek over the top of the boulder, to the points of impact. Every flower draws back into a stem, every reaching branch of a tree back to a trunk. He ducked back down, and made eye contact with the man at his side, sparing a mere moment to glance down to the bottom, where their supposed prey had turned up. His words tumbled out, half to his partner, half to himself, all with purpose.

"Cover's not gonna last. This is the shot we're getting! Renar's with the Captain, they can handle her—"

Just like staring down the earth-cracking strikes of the Hammer, stillness meant death. Use your head. Read the situation. Find the throughline in front of you. Adapt to the holes you get and pry them open. Small margins get bigger. A single moment seized turns certain loss into an opportunity to win. Even the mortally wounded can crush the throat of the Shadow, provided he has a clear vision of what he must do.

A deep, bassy split behind, and a shift in the earth as weight fell.

Time to go.

"On me! We move as one and we'll make it through!"

Fleuri Jodeau

As the advance begun, it became clear that the Hundi was not playing along with what Fanilly had predicted. The demon took flight and descended to where the captain was, while the slope that Fleuri and Gerard had taken cover on was being assailed by a pair of rolling orbs tumbling down. It would appear so far that neither the demon nor the mage were giving direct momentary attention to the two Reonites. Fleuri took cover near Gerard, poking his head out to observe the immediate threat they were facing.

The spheres, firing out randomly as they came down, were reshaping the hill, removing any cover that was present. If the knights tried to wait this out, they'd be left exposed for whatever the Hundi would next call down upon them. They needed to move. However, like Gerard had pointed out said, there was a pattern, and at least some predictability to them.

"I'm with you, Sir Gerard," Fleuri replied to the other knight as he emerged from cover and began to advance alongside him. Like Gerard said, they needed to take this shot, as it would be the only one they'd be getting.

@HereComesTheSnow

She had assumed that the logical choice was to dispatch the powerful close-range warrior to defend the area with the most possible cover.

She had guessed that it made more sense to focus on the more open side while the demon pinned down the advancing knights from the covered side.

She'd been terribly mistaken.

Sparks flew as Fanilly narrowly intercepted the tip of the demon's spear, the shock of the impact reverberating up the length of her arms and into her core.

Her teeth clenched, she slide back along the grass, only to be greeted with a crimson blur as the demon's weapon became a curved sword. Using the flat of her own blade, Fanilly was able to guide it off-course just enough in the same motion as she threw herself to the side.

The axe that followed bit through thin air, as she disengaged as quickly as she could manage.

She'd made a mistake.

A core element of the plan she'd put into action relied on the demon being deployed to cover the Southern approach, and she'd been completely mistaken.

The light burning the air ahead made it clear there was no time to focus on her failure. There wasn't even time to evade.

All she could do was----

Swing.

The Blade of the Iron Rose Knight-Captain flashed through the air in an instant. The speed honed by days of practicing dueling against the Gentle Blade ensured she was able to intercept the bolt of magical energy in the same way she would have intercepted a blade.

Her body rocked. She felt the earth beneath her feet break. She felt a burning sensation run through her arms as heat rushed through her sword.

Her body twisted.

The spell that had been launched at her was deflected.

It was rushed. She could hardly aim.

The spell was sent sizzling by, just past the demon's head and hurtling off into the distance.

Fanilly nearly hit the ground, gasping, her body shaking as she barely caught herself.

But there was no time to lie still.

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@Octo

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Fionn glanced at the broom as Gertrude sat upon it. Side-saddle; it only made sense, it'd be too thin for anything else without a seat. Impossible to grip with the legs, unlike a horse.

Or would it be? It would depend on the thighs, of course. But it would be wildly uncomfortable.

"Works for me!" he said, placing his weight against the broom, legs facing the opposite direction as Gertrude's. For balance. The back end of his hauberk shook out behind him so that he wasn't sitting directly atop the mail, and with his now-clawed hands, he grasped the broom on either side of him. "Let's see how high up we can get me to start, eh?"

Without any further fanfare, Gertrude set off, the broom rising and darting forward as fast as any horse he'd ever ridden on. The rest set off as well, Gisela and Krysia wasting no time engaging the others. The plan as the captain had explained it quickly fell apart; no surprises there to Fionn, well acquainted with how often plans would crumple as soon as any enemy resistance was encountered.

Squinting, he could see Rolan far below, taking a shot at the demon before resuming his climb upwards—pausing to reload and take a shot at Gisela herself. "Now's as good a chance as any," he said to Gertrude just in front of him. "Sling me by that cliff face, I'll jump and catch it. Get up as quick as you can and see if you can't give Rolan some covering fire in return."

As the broom made its swift approach for the cliff face in question, Fionn, hands gripping it white-knuckled, carefully positioned himself so that his feet were up atop the stick. Better not to waste any time at all, he figured—he'd just have to hope he didn't throw off Gertrude's flight path too much. Once she came close enough he released the broom, propelling himself off of it with a wild leap that sent him flying straight for the cliff face—

"Gah!"

He slammed hard into the wall, his now-clawed fingers grasping and scratching at the rocky face, carving small furrows as he slid down a bit before they found purchase. His feet kicked into decent footholds a moment after, and he hold on, trying to force wind back into lungs that had just had all the air knocked out of them, nearly three-quarters of the way to the top. Now, his only company was the wind blowing around him and the sounds of battle on the far side.

He reached up with his right hand, digging his claws in and forcing a handhold to exist with his magically-strengthened limbs. "Alright, stay occupied with the rest—"

He dug his toes into another foothold, half-pushing, half-pulling himself up until he could sink his left hand in just like his right.

"—and hopefully you'll be too busy for me coming up behind you."

"Why, hello there."

Fionn's ascent up the cliff had immediately run into an unexpected hitch: a small, green face leaning over the edge in curiosity. More than anyone, he would be able to recognise that it was a Niyar up there—and unfortunately not Fiadh, which rather reduced the chances of talking it out.

"Bye bye~"

Especially with the cliff-face now rapidly liquefying into mud.

@The Otter

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The vial of sand got a remporarily befuddled reaction, although sneezing wasn't quite what Renar had been hoping for. Certainly, there was irritation; the demon's eyes sure looked bloodshot. It also seemed that she didn't care and could see through any watering, or maybe just had a surprisingly high tolerance for blinding. Whatever the case, the tripping attempt was brought to a halt by the plain metal spike she forced into the ground.

Then Rolan fired his crossbow, and the armoured figure had immediately narrowed her eyes and was gone in a shimmer of purple—

—Appearing in front of the bolt instead and crushing the shot with a gauntleted fist. Her expression had gone from pleased to annoyed, and as Rolan was surely finding out now—he had her entire attention, as well as an uptick in aggression. That, or the sudden preference for weapons that would be large for a normal person was just her way of saying hello to archers.

@VitaVitaAR@Psyker Landshark@Eisenhorn

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While Gisela may have been planning some immediate follow-up to the destructive orbs, which were continuing now to roll away from the hill while steadily shrinking, the addition of magical fire from above was giving the duo climbing that side precious breathing room. Not that Gertrude's spells had gotten through to her, the older mage had simply raised her hand and the attacks kept slamming into a nearly-invisible barrier, the mana radiating cracks through it but the spells ultimately being absorbed.

The lack of fire in return soon ended, though. Rather than keep casting spell after spell, she had opted for a single powerful one of her own—

Gertrude probably wasn't happy to be on the receiving end of Shooting Stars, especially one so grossly overcharged in this short time that it was a veritable curtain of repeating fire. Oh, they were definitely weaker to be hit by, given that the Hundi had optimised for volume of fire, but that only meant so much when you were relying on staying in the air.

But that was still giving her an opportunity to look back at the knights climbing the hills, eyes widening at seeing how her demonic guardian was quite sidetracked, and start reciting another spell. This had an immediate visual effect, if anyone climbing (Fionn aside) were to look directly up. A flat disc where, instead, the sky was night.

Which was when the first sphere of silver light came crashing down. Far too short to actually hit Gerard, but the intent seemed clear—the Hundi was still chanting, and the hand not holding a staff was pointing. At least this gave warning, a second was now coming.

And then Fleuri. The captain. Renar. It wasn't rapid fire, but it was now accurate. And, if it hit, devastating.

@Octo@HereComesTheSnow@VitaVitaAR@Psyker Landshark

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@Raineh Daze

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"Why, hello there."

"Huh?"

Fionn looked up quickly at the voice addressing him, worried for a moment that it was Gisela herself taking a moment to notice his presence—seeing a Niyar instead was at least somewhat less concerning, in terms of the potential that his flesh would remain attached to his bones. Not one he recognized, but that wasn't terribly surprising—outside of Fiadh and any of the ones closest to her in the forests around Gleann Luaith and Dún Att, he couldn't really claim to know any Niyar, despite looking around Aimlenn as much as time allowed.

"Bye bye~!"

And she didn't even give him a chance to give a proper greeting before trying to get rid of him. He could see the cliff below her start to shift, rock and packed dirt glistening as though suddenly thoroughly flooded. Worse yet, the change was making its way down to him; if he had to guess, it would turn into a loose enough muck that he'd be almost unable to find any purchase, unless he was willing to shove his arms shoulder deep into it.

A slow, and unattractive proposition.

"Now, now, wait just a minute!" he called, glancing off to either side; at the sight of a tree that had started growing out from the wall, he moved, hand over hand, as rapidly as his skills could allow over to it. Even then he could already feel his holds moistening and loosening under his grasp, faster than he could just climb over to it—with little else to do, he launched himelf bodily, arms stretching out towards the tree as he commanded it: "Gabye!"

One branch bent its way towards him, lengthening improbably to meet his grasp; as soon as contact was made, his fingers wrapping around it, fresh growth twined around his wrist, securing him against a sure fall to his doom. Heaving himself up, he wrapped his other hand around the branch, the grasp on his wrist releasing as he did—heaved twice more, and now he was atop the the trunk that stuck out from the wall, catching his breath. At least it was rooted deeply enough not to fear disappearing in a mud slide.

It would pretty much have to be, he supposed; it was growing sideways out of a rocky face.

He turned to look back up at the small green girl that had addressed him. No doubt she might be a little surprised at hearing him call out some sort of magic she may have used, even if not as proficiently. But he couldn't tell that for sure over the mild surprise—possibly delight? They always were fond of interesting situations, and his failure to go plummeting to the base of the cliff below was surely something interesting—that was already on her face after witnessing his narrow escape.

Now, how best to get his way out of this without making a mudslide himself, or otherwise drawing too much of Gisela's attention to the cliff face rather than the hopefully-more-obvious threats posed by his fellow knights.

"Well, here I thought climbing would be hard enough!" he said after a few deep breaths, waving up with his left hand, the mark that Fiadh had left in his palm glinting in the sunlight obviously enough that the Niyar up above would have no way to miss it. "We haven't met before, have we? Would you let me know your name, please?"

Polite conversation was usually a safe starting path with fae like these. Just had to be careful what you said, how you phrased things, if you wanted any answers.

"You wouldn't happen to be acquainted with any of the Niyar or Senyar in northeastern Velt, would you?"