[b]First Blow[/b] – [i] Alexander Lyre[/i]

Alex jogged up the hill, trailing behind the rest of the group. The pistols glinted in his hands, red flashes of light blazing in the sun. He jangled with each step, leaving the trio of collapsed corpses behind. They weren’t going to stay down forever, but it was a problem for later. The foul mist lurked ahead, and soon enveloped him. Thankfully, the others were no quieter than he was, so he had no problem following. He maintained an easy lope; the tense nervousness and expectation of an ambush didn’t leave him until he broke through the mist.

What Alex found was worse than the anticipation. A magically drained corpse was tethered to a withered tree. He could barely tell it was a woman, with short blond hair. His first reaction was rather incongruous to the situation. [i]Gecko?[/i] His chest pounded and he tingled with same sensation he had right before he lost a big hand. Even Wren diving into view, worn down but unharmed didn’t alleviate it He was looking at the abomination that just missed her after all. 

[i][b]A gargoyle.[/b][/i] He let out a single pithy curse, in between his heavy breathing. The final card had still yet to be played here. Even the hulking monster, gaping fangs and heavy stone, wasn’t enough. [b]"More skin to sew unto my glorious frame..." [/b] Alex shuddered at the thought, and raised a single pistol, pointing it at the thing’s ugly face. Shuffling noises echoed up behind him, and he half spun around to look behind them. The other pistol rose up to aim at the nearest of the three shambling undead behind. [i]My old friends...[/i]

Thalien started barking out orders. Alex shrugged mentally. He didn’t remember her being put in charge, but they made sense. Despite the nigh overwhelming temptation to plant a bullet straight into those ridiculous and vicious fangs, Alex whirled around and focused on the unnatural corpses slowly making their way up behind him. “We meet again. Say hello to my little friends,” Alex whispered softly to himself. He fired the first aimed pistol, then took two steps to the side to fire the second one. He began a fast, but methodical reloading. “If you can cover my back, I’ld appreciate it Wren!”