The Law of the Battle [PM to join]

[Linius]

Linius raised the visor to his helmet, staring down at the little company they were regathering. He looked particularly to Annie, admittedly an accomplice to the bandits, though she did claim it was not by choice. "We take a moment to rest and recollect ourselves." he replied. "We will advance when Lady Lilliane is ready." Turning from her, he ventured a short distance further into the keep, and rested against a large chunk of debris. Strong though he was, plate armor was hard on the legs after one had been walking around in it all day.

[Valclaud]

Smiling at the thought of resting, Valclaud had a better idea; finding food. Afterall, it was the reason why he headed in the direction of this place anyway. Looking around, he noticed that although there weren't any birds about, the small marks in the dust indicated there was mice. Following the tracks, he came upon a pile of rubble. Lifting up a chunk of stone, the loose gravel it held up rushed in, swallowing up any creature living beneath. Waiting a few minutes, Valclaud started to shift through the gravel; pulling out three plump dormice.

Heading back to Annie was sitting, Valclaud sat down next to her and dusted off one of the mice before ripping the skin open and eating it. After gulping down the last of it and discarding the carcass, Valclaud faced Annie and offered her one, asking [white]"Want some? It's still fresh."[/white]

[Deleted]

Lillianne could not hold herself from hesitating for the briefest instant, a moment of doubt at the thought of taking anyone recruited from among the bandits with her, but the sheer ignominy of admitting to hesitation and indecision impelled her further along the path, overriding her momentary concerns. She held out a hand to the sitting girl, a gesture of trust as much as an invitation - rather than simply helping her up, Lilly's action was more calculated to include the girl in their group, if only for as long as she would stay. The Lycian mage wasn't sure how the violence was affecting her younger counterpart, but suspected that an unstated hint of camaraderie might go over well.

Also, there was less of a chance of backstabbing companions than random acquaintances. It was somewhat mercenary even in her head, but it was no less genuine for it; Lilly really did want to help, to make the girl feel a little more comfortable, but she couldn't shut off her inner noble. "Then welcome to our circle, Anna. Two magi are always better than one, eh?" Half-smiling, Lillianne allowed herself a moment of being somewhat pleased with the situation before being jerked back into the present by her inner tactician, remembering their goals and the importance thereof.

"Very well." Her tones were clipped, commanding as she spoke to the group rather than merely her fellow mage once more, turning toward the door. "We must secure the gate and decapitate the bandit leadership immediately - they have evinced an uncanny taste for strategy that I find myself exceeding wary of. These are no ordinary bandits; there is an animating intelligence behind them, driving them, training them, and I would know the truth of this matter."

And probably kill or capture all of them to end the general bandit threat, but Lilly was just reasonable enough to admit that she was partially just peeved that she had already been outplayed twice, with the initial ambush and the intended mounted column. She did not intend to give these common swine a third opportunity. "Linius at the vanguard; we will follow." Her head inclined towards the others, the lumpy, misshapen group of unique individuals who were nevertheless all trapped together now. "Clear side passages, and stay alert for the guardhouse." She didn't think there would be an endless horde of bandit archers at every corner, but this lot had shown uncanny resourcefulness already, and a booby trap or two would not surprise her.

Lilly felt her voice soften despite her best efforts to keep it hard as she neared Linius, searching for the right words. "...And be careful. I won't lose you."

[Linius]

Lilliane's tone when speaking had Linius' silent approval. She was doing well for one who had never been in this position before. The knight rose at her orders, lowering his visor. "Yes, my Lady." He smote his breast, turning to face the darkness of the keep. At last, he was where he was meant to be. At his Lady's side, serving as her shield and sword. In these confined spaces, his armor would be at it's best. They could not manuever around him, not with the walls at either side, where he could simply crush them between stone and steel.

Linius did not turn when his Lady spoke to him. He merely nodded, still looking ahead. He could not promise her his safety, when he had already sworn to keep her safe. He was her vassal. Her human shield. "I will try." he said at last, for it was the best that he could do. "Let us go. We should find our enemy before they find us."

[Annie]

It seemed that the mage woman and the man who hasn't spoken to her--Linius, from what the other blue-haired mage had said--didn't entirely trust her. That was fine, as Annie didn't think she'd trust another person in the same situation. She'd just have to give them good reason to trust her.

At least they were being polite about it, she thought, as the woman had at least welcomed her to the group, even if she'd used her proper name instead her cuter nickname. "Thanks" She'd been going to ask what her name was, but Valclaud interrupted by offering her a mouse, which she declined with a shake of her head. Not because eating mice grossed her out, but because she didn't want to owe him anything more, and plus they weren't cooked.

Annie lifted herself off the floor, but was again interrupted in her quest for a name when the lady mage started issuing her commands. "Understood~" Ah, well, she would ask later, she thought, but then Linius finally supplied the name of their leader. And also said that they were going to rest, so she leaned back against the wall.

[Sammi]

"Nice to meet you Anna!" said Sammi. She figured from the others that she was a Mage like Lillianne. She gave her a warm smile and then looked over and notices the shaman boy was approaching them with a bloody animal of some sort. Sammi flinched at the site because even though she would hunt wild animals, at least she would cook. She wouldn't help the guy if he got some foreign type of rabies.

Sammi noticed that Linius was hesitant to trust Anna, but she was always one to pit forth a little trust. It was one of her better traits, but it might also be dangerous. She figured that she needed to wait a little bit to see what Annie was capable of. Lilly was issuing her commands and as she finished Sammi nodded. "Understood", she said in Lilliane's direction. At that she wandered over to where most of her arrows had landed from the previous battle and cleaned them. She also took some lose arrows from the fallen archers. She needed all she could get her hands on at this moment because the worst thing would be to run out of arrows in the middle of a battle.

[Valclaud]

Seeing how Annie didn't seem so keen to eat, Valclaud shrugged and put the two remaining mice in his pocket. Standing up and dusting himself off, Valclaud pulled out his tome and turned towards Lillianne, a smile spread across his face. [white]"Are we going to cause more pain and death towards the bandits again? Because thats fun. I want to do it again and hear their agonizing screams as their life is snuffed out like the insects they are"[/white] he explained, his face and tone getting darker as he went into detail of the bandit's fate.

[white]"Anywho, should we proceed? They aren't going to inflict pain and torment to themselves without help!"[/white] he ended with, resuming his cheerful and childish tone as he walked up to where the group mostly assembled, and waited as he whistled a tune offkey entirely.

[Deleted]

youtu.be/g4aPMo7TcR8

"Haaah," she sighed, feeling the tension flow through and out of her.

Lilly stood aside from the rest of the group for a moment, watching them prepare through lidded eyes, mentally preparing herself for the coming storm of action. The idea that she had completely misjudged the situation and was about to be shot dead was certainly a major subject, but so too was the mounting responsibility as the situation disintegrated into more and more issues; what had started as a well-meaning minor job with the pleasant side effect of drumming up a bit of excitement and support for her had turned into...

Well, the ex-marquess wasn't entirely sure just yet. These bandits were inordinately well armed, utilized tactics on par with special forces, and had already nearly wiped out her little invasion force twice. Even as sloppily as the outlaws had executed their tactics, the simple fact remained that she had been entirely outplayed, and Lilly was equal parts incensed at having lost a battle of wits to bandits and severely worried that the next time would prove to be her downfall. That these brigands had managed to come up with tactics like these at all pointed to an animating intelligence well above average - and it would only take time for them to perfect their new approach. Bandits, while mean-spirited and desperate creatures, were not stupid; if they could take an advantage, they would.

"Ah, the hell with it," she muttered, slipping her jacket off in one fluid motion, utmost efficiency of movement defining her actions as Lilly wrapped it around her waist. No point in giving their opponents more time to recuperate; she had to take her momentary advantage and press it, forcing the swine here to react, rather than allowing them time to prepare.

Free to cast without restriction, the tide of magic flowing through her intensified, manifesting in flickering sparks erupting from her arms in brief but brilliant displays, waves of heat charring the air around her. In close quarters combat, there would be no time for fancy casting; it was time to hope that her experimental amplification would work better than it had in the woods. At least she had some field testing to go off of this time.

"Call to arms!"

The imperial command in her voice was palpable, matched by the whiplash crack of a burst of fire and force that hurled the door backwards. Even as the brief stream emitted from her outstretched arm died down, the gargled cry of agony from within was clear in its import - the first victim of the final push. "-And prepare to sortie." She had to be strong, Lilly reminded herself, to show fearless leadership regardless of the worry gnawing at her heart. How would she wrest Lycia into one coherent force if she could not even overcome a few bandits or pull together a gaggle of adventurers long enough to complete that task?

Lillianne was the first into the breach, barely pausing to incinerate the bleeding bandit on the floor before sweeping onwards, determined to take these swine to task for their deeds.

The labrynthine maze of corridors within the fortress were dark and infested with bandits, but they were little more than refuge to be swept aside by the relentless tide of progress, the group tearing through the hasty defenses. After passing through the ruined barracks, they came at last to the broken ruins of what had once been an interrogation chamber, long-defunct bloody tools and machinery still lining the walls and scattered across the floor, with a barred door leading into what appeared to be a more habitable room - the jail, Lilly realized, glancing through the viewport. Barred. That meant there was probably someone in it... someone not a bandit, potentially. Annie's situation came to mind.

Perhaps someone else to join their little crusade.

The force of the detonation, Domination runes switched for Power almost in their entirety, nearly blew her off her feet regardless of Lillianne's attempts to brace herself - but the door was not so lucky, essentially disintegrating instantly. A cloud of flaming wooden shards spraying the wall within, cells she could barely make out through the acrid haze arrayed off to the side. Wwwwwwelp. For how little she had actually planned out that particular entrance, it could have gone worse. "Secure the area," she quietly said to the group, before stepping forward into the prison area.

"Knock knock."

{yeah feel more than free to flesh out their little journey or even get separated inside the fortress if you want to do some solo/duo exploration, I just wanted to get the topic moving again and find Verys. I glossed over bandit attacks but again feel free to do whatever with them as well. WE'RE MOVING ON IN FOLKS LET'S DO DIIIIS}

[Alicia]

Alicia gritted her teeth as her arm shook, the bandit's axe gliding off the shield she had pilfered from one of the dead knights during a lull in the fighting. Her entire body ached, and it felt as though she hadn't had a moment's rest ever since the portcullis had opened; the bandits before her had proven both stubborn and resilient, though thankfully not cunning enough to bring her down yet. She brought her lance arm up to bear, but was forced to parry a second thug's sloppy sword strike before she could strike against the man before her; a low growl of frustration escaped her. The swordsman danced away swiftly, dodging her armored, sweeping kick with ease. The stalemate had gone on for far too long; she was breathing heavily, and would make a mistake if they kept pushing her. It offended her pride as a knight of Etruria, but she could see no choice but to retreat for now.

She made to step back, but stopped, her eyes spying a half-open door out of the corner of her eye, almost completely hidden from her point of view behind the remains of a wooden cart. She switched directions, angling her backwards walk towards it, allowing the bandits to steadily push her off the portcullis and into the open courtyard. With a loud cry, she shoved her shield forward instead of blocking the next blow, the axe biting into her wrist; though the heavy plate gauntlet protected her, she still bit down on her lower lip in pain as the armor dug back into her arm as it absorbed the blow, the leather padding underneath insufficient to completely disperse the bandit's force.

The bandits did not fare as well. The one that had attacked her fell backwards, clutching at his face as he bowled into the other two, staggering them. Good, she had broken his nose. A small part of her felt guilty for the rush of satisfaction that followed her observation, but the three before her had tried her patience enough. She stepped backwards quickly, keeping her lance and shield trained on the three as she stepped through the door and barred it from the inside. Strange; the path seemed pretty well-used, yet there was nobody guarding it. The sudden, loud banging of someone knocking on the door from the outside startled her out of her thoughts, and almost out of her armor; a short squeak escaped her before she could help herself. Alicia cursed silently, irritated more at her own blunder than at the bandits outside; her focus had slipped, and that was unacceptable. She shook her head, following the passageway.

The path opened into a large room filled with kitchenware; a large metal pot hung over a firepit, a somewhat appetizing smell filling the area. Discarded pots and spoons were tossed around the room haphazardly, as if its previous inhabitant had opted for a hasty retreat. She looked around the room slowly, but could only find the remains of half-chopped ingredients atop a long table, a large kitchen knife left behind hastily. She left quickly; the sight and scent of food was starting to make her feel hungry. The Etrurian wandered down the twisting pathway; her eyes widened in surprise at the chaos that dominated the inside of the fortress as she pushed onwards. The sleeping quarters, in particular, looked as though a small whirlwind had slipped inside and demolished the room; she shook her head in amazement. How could anyone sleep in such conditions? She could barely see the mattresses under the piles of litter, debris and poorly-kept weapons.

"Found you!"

Alicia turned, her lance at the ready; the three bandits from the portcullis spilled forth into the room without any semblance of order or formation. Then again, they had seen fit to warn her of their coming...and were now facing her in an enclosed space. The corners of her mouth turned upwards in a rare display of emotion for a moment, before the woman schooled her features, her gaze growing steely. She wouldn't lose focus twice in one battle. Not wasting time on a speech, she charged, shield at the ready; the three scattered to her sides, but she had been expecting their movement. With a swift jerk of her hand, she slammed the shield to her left, clipping the axe-wielder on the shoulder as he attempted to dodge; before the other man could yell, she twisted her hips, bringing the lance down in a wide arc to slam on the wrist of the bandit to her right as he attempted to draw his sword. The man cried out in pain, holding his wrist as he stumbled back, his weapon clattering to the ground; she turned to the first one, who had now recovered from the jolt her shield had caused. The man brought his axe up to attack at her unprotected head; Alicia let out a loud battlecry as she charged straight at him, knocking him back and pushing him against the wall with her shield. The weight of the Etrurian and her armor pinned him against the cold, unyielding stone of the fortress; his eyes rolled up as he fell to the floor, unconscious. She turned, bringing her shield up, expecting an attack from the third assailant, only to catch a glimpse of the leather heel of his boots as he fled the room. She knocked out the kneeling swordsman with her gauntleted fist before stepping outside and barring the door with a broom handle; at least, she hoped it would delay them a little.

The Etrurian tilted her head at the sound of a detonation, the creaking of wood and fire echoing briefly inside the enclosed space; she made her way down the pathways once more, following the sound. Coming to the entrance of what appeared to be a torture chamber, she knocked on the already open door twice, a small smirk on her face.

"Who's there?"

[Sammi]

If Sammi learned anything from this, it was to never underestimate bandits. Not like she did in the first place, but she needed to make sure she was cautious as ever as she stepped inside the fortress.

The group had started speading out, so Sammi took the oppertunity explore a little bit. Se didn't wan to go to far though because, although she wasn't one to admit that she was dependant, she felt that she might regret not having someone else around in the chance that she would get caught in a situation she admittably couldn't handle.

She pushed open a door that led to what seemed like a storage room. It wasn't used for armor and weapons, but for what looked like matresses and some broken pieces of wood that could have been chairs at one point...

She left and walked down the hallway, when she heard footsteps. Unsure if who it was, she cautiously turned the corner of the opposite way the voice was coming, only to run into a bandit.

"Oh look. Another one. She should be easy."

Sammi instinctly jumped out of the way at the bandits attempt to swing his axe down at her. 'Too close,' she thought, and next time she wouldn't be as lucky.

She gave herself a good distance, before loading her bow and firing two arrows one after another. She didn't want to risk losing them all again, but it payed off as he dodged the first one, but the second one landed in his side. He moved in closer, but Sammi kept putting good distance, landing a couple good hits, but only to be returned with him cursing that he couldn't get enough distance. He moved out, threatening to get her later, but Sammi wondered why there weren't any others that tried to attack her. Just then Alicia turned the corner and noticed her standing there confused.

"Don't worry. I took care of the others."

Just then, a sound of an explosion of some sort, was heard in the distance. Alicia turned down the hall to follow it, so Sammi followed close behind, curious to see what had happened, but knew there was a purpose behind it and she knew she wouldn't be as incredibly lucky as she was the first time.


Hal Edit: Combined the two post, deleted the others. Post count and gold removed from deleted post.

[Selena]

The fates had a sick sense of humor. She'd fought plenty of brigands, ner-do-wells and general troublemakers before. She'd fought monsters from the pits of some dark dream before! Sure, she may have lost from time to time, but she always came out of it ok.

This time seemed like it might be different. It was an easy job, they said. Just rout a few troublemakers that took over an old fort, shouldn't take long at all. Just some 'local color' with nice walls. Like all bandit groups, if you cut off the head, they'd scatter. Sure they'd be back later, but they'd be much less organized and dangerous. This wasn't the first time the group had gotten a bad job, but it was the first time it had been off by this much. Instead of the usual trouble makers, she'd walked right into the maw of a well coordinated, well armed, and unusually skilled group of plunderers. She could still take them one on one, but their numbers were far beyond what she could hope to conquer alone.

And so, here she sat in the prison of this derelict fort. Her armor left on, due to them not spending much time dealing with her. Looked like they were preparing for something else, but her weapon and shield had been stolen away. Thankfully, they had not taken them very far, throwing them into a corner with a bunch of other possessions, likely to be sold off later.

She was left in her cell, hitting herself mentally for being so stupid, completely oblivious to the commotion outside the jail cell. At least she was until a tremendous echo and shower of wood splinters filled the main room. She jumped up from the stone floor, and glanced out of the wooden door through it's metal bars. Someone had...blown open a wall?! Well if they did that they certainly weren't friends of the people staying here. That made them, as the saying went, the enemy of my enemy.

[blue]"Hey! Give me a hand here, will you?"[/blue] She called into the dust cloud, not having seen who it was. She did consider the fact that maybe this was not wise, but this was her one chance to get out of here. She could be picky later.

[Deleted]

Lilly found herself stifling a giggle at Alicia's unexpected riposte; despite the tension that had been building up in her body through the the nerve-wracking adventure thus far helping lend some gravity to the situation, an amused snort escaped the Lycian mage nonetheless, a wry smile clawing its way to her lips. "Certainly not the door, at any rate." The snile grew for a moment before dissolving into a solemn expression. "Alas, poor Doorick, I knew him well." Her eyes twinkled as she continued, belying the dour look on her face. "A fixture of infinite stress, of most excellent fanciness."

Lillianne paused, her expression turning pensive for a moment, before piping up once more, her voice halfway between wondering and amused. "Apparently murdering doors brings out the poet within me. How quaint." A theatrical sigh, and the smile vanished from her face so quickly it might well never have existed, her expression taking on a more serious tone. One hand snaked out quickly, landing on Alicia's shoulder in a moment of half-planned cameraderie. "Good to see you're safe. We've been hemorrhaging people in the interest of clearing out the rest of the area - it'll be nice to have a bit of backup for the final push." And Sammi! At least there were a few people she could trust. Ish. They hadn't turned out to actually be the Prophet and his Herland in disguise, anyways!

...Yet.

Lilly gave Alicia The Eye(tm) for a moment before half-turning her head and nodding slightly to Sammi, acknowledging her as well. "The both of you have proven yourselves quite capable, in fact."

By now, the initial fallout from the detonation was gradually clearing, apparently joined by the shell-shocked surprise of survivors; voices picked up around the ravaged prison, startling Lillianne; she had assumed there would be more noise in the immediate aftermath of her triumphant entrance, but apparently people didn't react as quickly to devastating, unexpected explosions instantly. She looked at Alicia again, shrugged with a wry smile and a conspiratorial wink as if to admit she was winging this completely, and grabbed a keyring - which she really hoped was actually the one used to unlock prison doors or it was going to be really weird when she tried to let people out and failed miserably at it - from its precarious position, dangling slowly in the aftermath of her tumultuous entry, and strode over to where the cells seemed to be.

Her stomach turned when she realized the contents of the prison - rather than an army of imprisoned warriors, the population seemed to be comrprised primarily of civilians; men, women, even two children, hanging to the hem of their battered mother's dress with eyes wide as saucers. Lillianne cringed slightly, realizing that maybe her triumphant entrance might been slightly overdone given that it had most likely done little to sate the fears of the victims here. But there was a cost to being so unrelentingly amazing, and she had to shoulder it... for the good of the people, of course.
Still, the taste of victory was bitter, tinged by bile; even as she unlocked the cells in rapid succession, barely comprehending the incessant nattering and whispering, she could feel the elated joyousneess that had suffused her dissolving into disgust at what had happened here at what the bandit scum had done. Hostages, likely, for ransom or to force cooperation across the countryside that they plagued.

What worried her even more than the injustice of the act, though, was how unusual this behavior was. Bandits taking hostages before was nothing new, but - even without knowing the full story, this still appeared more... planned than she was familiar with. Organized. People were crowding her, babbling their stories - a baker here, a seamstress there; no one important enough to attract the attention of regional authorities, but community figures within their respective villages. A campaign of fear, of control, rather than simply blind hostage-taking in hopes of a king's ransom.

What any of this actually meant... she had no idea, but Lilly had a sinking feeling that it wasn't anything good. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that she had ideas, but did not particularly like any of them. The concept of a calculated destabilization of the region, even a strictly localized version restricted to a backwater area of a small Lycian territory, was not an encouraging thought; it suggested purpose, backing - anything from rebellious Khatheleti nobility to an Etrurian plot, an attempt by Bernese rebels to annex territory for their purposes or imperialistic Ilians no longer satisfied with merely taking hold of their current vassal state.

Or maybe these bandits were just... unnaturally intelligent. Yes, that was it, definitely, she struggled to convince herself; she was just overreacting, Lilly decided, looking too far into a completely unrelated set of coincidences.

But there was a voice in the back of her mind that refuses to believe the honeyed words, one that she could not help but worry about. But fear - that was the purview of the weak, of those who could not muster the strength to face the challenges with which the world sought to grind them to dust. For the sake of these people, as well as her own peace of mind, she could not give in to it, to falter in her path.

"The fortress is mostly clear, but hostile elements remain. You will be safer if you stay here for the time being; once we clear the castle, we will escort you to safety." The idea of taking a dozen different road trips in a row was not particularly appealing, and Lilly secretly hoped that no one took her up on the offer, but she would not recant on it regardless of how inconvenient it might be. She would do what needed to be done.

She was not yet done, though. Her voice rose, clarion and hard. Imperial in its challenge - the tone of an orator. "If there are any among you willing to take up arms for your countrymen, your fellow Lycians, I welcome your aid in purging this den of filth with steel and flame." Lillianne didn't really expect anyone to pipe up - and she wouldn't blame a bunch of civilians for not wanting to get stabbed within minutes of escaping from this hell - but they could definitely use the help if there were to be any more trickery from the swine still lurking in the shadows of the ruined fortress.

[Selena]

Selena cursed herself as she had to be rescued along with the civilians she came here to help. A good dose of humility for the Lycian Aegis as she nodded a silent thanks to the woman who rescued her. She must have been quite powerful to make it here alone. Or, judging by her companions, she hadn't come alone. Which, Selena had to admit, was a much wiser choice.

As soon as her cell door opened, she ran over into the corner. She knew precisely what she was looking for, and pulled an old and worn buckler and blade from the pile of possessions. Strapping the shield back on to her left arm, she gave the blade a quick swing before nodding, and approaching Lilly as she sheathed the blade.

[blue]"I'm on a job here to rout these scum out of here, they've been causing trouble in the neighboring areas. If we have the same task in mind, which I'd guess we do, then I'll lend you my aide. And request yours in return."[/blue] She said, eying the woman who looked the leader, noting no weapon on her. Wait, she had just blown up a wall. Right, mages.

[blue]"The man in charge of this place, from what I saw, is a heavy knight, much like your friend there."[/blue] She said, gesturing to Alicia. [blue]"I fear to wonder where a thief got such a solid suit of armor. But then again, these don't seem like common brigands to me. But of course you likely know that already, having reached this far inside the fort."[/blue]

Her conversation was interrupted by the sound of many foot falls down the hall. Apparently the destroyed wall had gathered quite a bit of attention. Selena drew her sword and went to block the hallway as best as she could, holding her shield steady. [blue]"We cannot let them harm the civilians! I will try to hold them, do you think you can cover me?"[/blue] She asked to Lilly as she focused her eyes forward. Fighting them in a bottleneck would be much better then fighting them in an open room like this. Especially with a magic user behind her.

[Alicia]

Alicia valiantly struggled to keep her face straight, but each of Lilliane's lines was like a sledgehammer bearing down on her composure. She felt the corners of her lips turn upwards as a short giggle escaped her. "Backup? I like to think I'm more capable than that." She snorted before giving the Lycian mage a brief, small, unforced smile, letting her know she was joking. Though she could not feel the blue-haired woman's hand through her armor, the gesture still eased her. "It is good to see you well too." She paused as she made a show of clearing her throat. "Perhaps you are an adequate leader after all." She allowed her voice to drawl on slightly, emphasizing the word, feeling the corners of her lips curl upwards into a smile once more. Saint Elimine save her, but part of her was glad to see the infuriating mage safe.

Her mood quickly grew more somber as she peered into the room with the cells; the prisoners' despair seemed to have seeped into the room's very walls, giving it an oppressive feeling that threatened to overwhelm her. Her expression grew stony as she struggled to remain impassive, her heart going out to the children that had been captured by the heartless creatures. She had seen prisons before, in the heart of Etruria, but she had never been able to swallow the feelings of indignation, anger and despair the sight of prisoners suffering evoked within her. It was part of why she had requested to be assigned to field positions, as opposed to guard duty. Her jaw clenched as she pushed her anger away, succeeding only partially. The bandit leader would pay.

Her eyes flashed as a young green-haired woman ran out of her cell; instincts that had been drilled into her during the arduous years of training causing her to raise her shield slightly before she supressed her reaction. She relaxed once more slightly, nodding at her words. "Armor does not make a knight. He will be brought to Saint Elimine's justice." Her tone grew harder as she tightened her grip on the lance in her right hand. She turned at the sound of rushing steps, noting with surprise the swordswoman had rushed past her to block the passage; her estimation of their newest ally rose at her display of bravery. She nodded, more to herself than at anyone in particular as she moved to her side, blocking the opening completely. "Saint Elimine protect and guide us," she spoke softly in prayer, her voice barely audible as she waited for the bandits to approach. None would break her shield.

[Selena]

Selena spared Alicia a sideways glance, but offered a half smile through her religious monologue. [blue]"It is my honor to have an ally at my side."[/blue] She spoke to her, as the first few foes became visible. Typical, a pair of axe wielders, slightly staggered since the hallway wasn't wide enough for them to run side by side, charging at the pair of them. Would have been great if it stayed that way, but it spread out closer to the archway. No doubt they intended to try and push through. But still, they were just more ruffians, probably didn't have a day of solid training between the both of them. She raised her buckler up as the first one came towards her, fully preparing to beat back the sloppy axe strike and strike him down.

It was a decent surprise when a particularly well placed strike pushed her buckler aside, as the dark haired man came around for a solid vertical slash of his axe. Reacting quickly, Selena used her blade to push the axe off to the side. The twin weapons scraped along the wall, the shower of sparks illuminating the battle for a moment, as they both quickly pulled their weapons free. Ok...so this guy had some idea what he was doing.

She thrust her sword towards the man, and he moved out of the way of the blade. It wasn't an easy dodge, but the fact remained that her blade stayed dry. The foot falls hadn't stopped either, more were coming. Ok, she would use her shield to deflect his next strike, taking into account his ability, and then counter with a solid thrust. She needed to end this fight quicker.

And then a sight over the man's shoulder made her abandon that plan. She shifted her buckler up just in time to deflect an arrow fired right towards her neck. The shot had been wide, and would have likely hit her left shoulder, but still. They had people to hold the line, and were using archers in the back? When fighting in a confined space with no way around? How well trained were they?

She had precious little time to think on it, as she had to once again use her sword to bat aside the man's axe, instead of pressing the attack.