The defeat of Vladmir Stormfeather. or The spie's last stand. (Thorns of Steel TP) (VERY long....)

The campsite of the Allies...

It's morning. Birds are singing quietly, and thankfully Zarok has not devoured any of them. The young monitor lizard walks happily back to camp, with several fresh fish over his shoulder tied to a stick. He buzzes a song quietly, happy that everything seems to be working out.

Zork sharpens a stick by his tent for absoluetly no reason, for the past few weeks he has put his silly side aside to face the danger his brother is in, he will not change now.

DoraRose has been sitting by the fire, grilling some little cakes on a flat stone. She doesn't have a tent, preffering to look at the stars when she cannot sleep from the warmth of her sleeping bag, which is now rolled up and tied to the bottom of her haversack. The Sword of Martin is strapped to her back, and her own sword, with its blue cat's-eye-crystal pommel stone glinting slightly in the sun, is laying unsheathed by her side. Her blue eyes are hard as she thinks and plans and remembers. She is ready for battle.

Zarok meanwhile plunks himself down by the fire and holds up the fish. "Look what I gotzzz fer breakf'st!"

Zork laughs and pats the monitor the head. "Good job child, but I think we would COOK the fish first."

DoraRose glances at the fish and smiles a little. "Yes, we would and we shall. Zork, would you please clean the fish? Nice work Zarok. When Zork is fineshed, would you please bring them over here to me?"

Zork proceeds to clean the fish, and nods. "Aye, the better the food the more energy we have to put Vladdy in the ground."

Zarok grins. "We bury him nizze an' deepz!"

DoraRose's lips form a tight line as she keeps her bloodthirsty comments to herself. She flips the little cakes over again and states, "I think these are almost done."

"Zzzmell good," Zarok says, nodding approvingly.

Zork puts the fish to the side. "Ok, done. We can cook them now."

DoraRose smiles. "Thank you. They do smell good. They're my Nana's recipe." nodding at the fish, she adds, "Could you please bring those over here, Zarok?"

Zarok nods and brings the fish over, giving them to the mousemaid.

DoraRose takes the fish and begins stuffing herbs into them. "Zarok, listen to me...I need you to stay by my side, alright? Do not leave me in the battle to come." after seasoning the aquatic scaly beings, she sticks them on the fire, wrapped up in dock leaves.

Zarok nods, serious now. "Rightz. I stay near youzz."

Zork puts his sword in it's scabbard, ready to face the battle he knows is coming soon. "Do we have any sort of strategy coming into this? One does not simply walk into Vladmir's lair."

A slight jerk of Zarok's head as he scents incoming creatures is all that heralds Darkwatcher's entrance into the camp. "I believe the plan was for this party to head into the base while my mercenaries and I cover your backs, clearing hostiles while you press the attack."

Gildor follows quickly behind Darkwatcher, but stays on the edge of the camp and in the shadow of a huge oak tree.

DoraRose looks up at the mercenary, a slightly blank look on her face. "I was not aware of any such plans, sir..." the smell of cooking fish begins to waft into the nostrils of the creatures in the clearing.

"Well, that's the plan I intend to follow," Darkwatcher answers, sitting down by the fire and pulling out his longbow, restringing it for no other reason than it being something to do.

Zork sighs. "Whatever plans frees Oz, I will follow it, Mr. Darkwatcher" he takes a drink of water. "But lets not anger our allies"

"Just...Darkwatcher. Forget the Mr.," the mercenary says with a slight laugh. "But most beasts don't have time to call me either. Usually it's 'Hey! The black fox! Stop 'im--uUUURGh'." Meanwhile, Zarok's eyes glint as the smell of fish penetrates his mind.

DoraRose nods and turns her attention back to the cakes she's making. Taking them off the rock, she places them on some clean dock leaves to cool, then checks the fish. For some reason, she finds the fox's comment funny, and stifles a small giggle, a smile lighting up her face.

Gildor stays by the tree, but the smell of fish gets to him and he takes a step toward the fire, his eyes looking orange.

Zork laughs. "I think your fish is attracting everyone, Zarok...lets hope it doesn't attract Vlad."

Zarok laughs his rasping, metallic laugh as well before sniffing the fish closely.

Some time later, after breakfast is eaten, Darkwatcher stands up and stretches. "Gildor, I think it's time we were moving out. Stormfeather's bolt-hole should be eastwards from here." He walks to the edge of the camp and turns partway, nodding to the party. "Go carefully, and keep your blades and minds equally sharp. See you on the far side." Then he's gone into the woodlands

Gildor has taken his food with him back to the tree. He is not quite done when Darkwatcher is and his mouth is full, so he answers with a nod of the head.

Zork eats but begins to feel nervous of all the commotion going about. "Does that mean we are leaving soon?"

DoraRose stands, buckling her sword to her side, slipping her haversack onto her back over the Sword of Martin, then putting her mottled cloak on over the sack. "Yes, I believe so. Happy hunting. Let's go." She puts out the fire with a thick layer of soil, motions for Zarok to follow her, then melts into the forest, her cloak making her invisible in the darkness under the trees. She turns back to wait for Zork, pulling her hood over her ears until all you can see is the lower part of her face.

Zork gets up. "I suppose we are going then," he sheathes his sword and gulps down what is left of his food, preparing for the battle he knows is coming soon.

Zarok trots after them, swallowing the remainder of his meal whole before he follows, his tail swinging enthusiastically back and forth.

Gildor is not moving until he is finished with his breakfast. An army runs on its stomach as the saying goes. He quickly slurps up the rest of his food than stands and wipes his paws on his pants and follows the group, staying a few feet behind.

'Off they travel, to find the cruel, evil, murderous fox Vladmir Stormfeather...but they make a stop on the way...

In the woods...somewhere....

Zork looks around, happy about how well hidden the area is. "I don't like the mud, but everything else is fine, carry on."

Zarok stiffens. "Not fine...not fine at all." His nostrils flare and his eyes widen, his scales greying slightly as if he's going to be sick.

Darkwatcher freezes as well, heeding the monitor's warning, aware of the keenness of the sense of smell posessed by lizards. The mercenary nocks an arrow with eye-blurring dexterity and pads softly into the stretch of woods to the north.

Gildor keeps his position at the back of the group, keeping an eye out for anything that looks suspicious...and plants. He can't help but look for plants.

DoraRose stops and kneels down by the lizard she sees as her charge. "What is it?" she whispers, putting her left arm around him and her right paw on the hilt of Martin's legendary blade.

Zarok's scales go even greyer, and his lidless eyes glitter wildly. Five strangled words rip themselves from his throat. "Smellz...it zmells...smellz like..." When he continues, his voice drops into a hoarse whisper, barely audible. "...death." Suddenly he breaks away from DoraRose and sprints ahead into a clearing.

Zork blinks. "Smells like...death?" he draws his sword, hoping that this death smell does not get him. "HEY!, where is the little tyke going?"

Gildor looks over and seems to see somthing, probably a plant and he is just about to rush over to it when Zarok rushs off. He scowles and quickly catchs up with DoraRose and Zork. "Should we follow him?" He hopes the answer will be no so he can go grab the plant.

"Zarok!" screeches DoraRose as she draws the Sword of Martin, whirling it around her paw, narrowly missing the cat. "Of course we have to follow him, you moron! He's just a dibbun!" and off she runs, cloak billowing behind her, ready for a fight.

The clearing...

The lizard comes through the trees into a clearing full of...Death, just as he said. Vermin--each and every one motionless and assuredly /dead/--litter the clearing, blood and gore tainting the woodlands. At the center of the clearing, a grey-furred beast, garbed only in simple, well-worn grey robes and a threadbare, dark grey cloak with the hood over his head, sits alone by a small fire, holding a pitch-black paw-and-a-half sword over the flames.

Zork blinks. "Who is that?" he begins to act childish again as he whispers very loudly.

DoraRose stops at the edge of the clearing, the blade of Redwall glinting in her paw. Ignoring the badger's question, she murmers to the lizard dibbun, "Stay here." She takes a step forward and looks out from beneath the hood of her own cloak, blue eyes flashing slightly as she keeps her silence, just watching this strange creature.

The apparent murderer of the many vermin that clutter the area turns his gaze slightly to regard the newcomer, at first calmly, but then his gaze meets her eyes, and his own eyes turn cold and hard. After a long beat that seems to last centuries, he finally speaks, eyes like frostbit shards of Winter itself, burning with the cold fires of raw hatred, of bitter, pent-up fury as he venomously, contemptously spits out a single word. ".../You/."

Zork seems a little grossed out by the sight, but decides to say nothing about it, he hides behind DoraRose. "You talk to him."

Gildor stays back in the trees, watching this cloaked beast with a frown.

Zarok disobeys DoraRose somewhat and takes a few cautious steps forward, clambering up onto Zork's head like a vulture on a ledge and shading his eyes with one clawed, scaley paw as he gazes down at the bearer of the dark blade.

DoraRose takes a step foreward, eyeing the other cloaked beast carefully. Does she know him? Naw, can't be. She takes another step foreward. "Do I know you?"

One eyebrow is raised beneath the hood. "You really /are/ a fool if you don't remember me.../Rose/," he adds in a whisper, the firelight glinting on a single word carved into his swordblade.../Nevermore/.

Zork gulps. "You know this guy....he scares me. Can we just go save Oz now?" he pats Zarok on the head. "Now you stay THERE now."

DoraRose gasps, looking like she's been stabbed. Could it be...? She charges at the other beast, swinging her sword...oh, wait. It's the Sword of Martin. Yikes. Anyway, she charges and swings, screeching a battle cry...."/LILY!!/"

The other beast stands up in a blur of movement and flicks the black sword up to defend himself, metal clashing on metal as the two blades cross. Over the points of the swords, he snarls, "You! How /dare/ you use her name like that! How /dare/ you try to strike down your own kin!" Incidentally, the grey hood falls from over his head, revealing...Dark, bitter eyes, cold, pained...Several relatively fresh, dark scars...A v-shaped nick in the right ear...And a muzzle slightly narrower than that of the average mouse, almost ratlike in appearance.

Zork backs up. "Let's stay out of this, Zarok" he places the dibbun down behind a tree. "Stay THERE"

Zarok nods mutely and for once doesn't argue, fear showing in his eyes, his scales still slightly gray-tinged.

DoraRose gazes into those deep eyes, her own a slight pink in colour from the Bloodwrath...wait. Aw, nuts. "Emyuil Streamstone! What on Earth are you doing here! You should be at home, helping Papa in the forge!" She draws back, very angry at this strange mouse, for some reason. *Ahem* She knows him, no doubt about that.

"I'm not Emyuil Streamstone. Not anymore," the creature hisses. "I'm the Half Rat now. And Papa's /dead./ So's Mum."

Zork blinks. "The Half-Rat? Really? It's about not scar- nope still scary."

DoraRose is trembleing from sheer rage. "You gave up the name our parents gave you?!" the last words sink in..."No. No, you're lieing!" she swings her left paw at his face, so upset she can't even think straight. At least she's not using her sword...correction, the Sword of Martin the Warrior. That would be even worse.

Emyuil takes a pace backwards and shouts, "Dryditch Fever took them! Both of them! Our brothers left for apprenticeships in Roma! I was the only one left! I swear by my own blood that I speak the truth!"

DoraRose gasps and freezes, pain, intense agony flooding into her face. With a strangled sob, she drops Martin's blade, falls to her knees, and weeps. Brokenly.

Zarok rumbles low in his throat and stalks forward until he's by the mousemaid's side, laying his tail on her shoulders protectively/consolingly.

Emyuil continues shouting. "I thirsted for the blood of Stormfeather! I wanted to hunt him! And you left me behind! How could you? /How could you?/"

Zork grins. "Another that wants to kill Vladmir...why not just join us Mr. Half-Rat" he is still a bit scared though and doesn't come out of the shadows.

"Come out into the light, coward," Emyuil calls in reply.

Emyuil's words break through DoraRose's sorrow, and she slowly, shakily stands, lifting her tear-filled blue eyes to meet those of her brother. "It was not my choice! Mama and Papa wouldn't've allowed it! And don't you /dare/ call him a coward! He is helping...helping...." she can't go on, her tears choking her, her sorrow silencing her. She slumps, looking for all the world like a broken puppet.

Emyuil sets the tip of the black sword into the ground and leans on its hilt, looking tired for a moment. "You could've let me come with you. But I will never forgive you now. You left me there, imprisoned, to watch those I loved each sicken and die, or abandon me. Do you know what I went through? Endless nights alone, contemplating whether it was worth it to exist any longer? Do you know what you /did/ to me?"

Zarok moves forward and hugs DoraRose silently, hoping against hope that somehow it'll make things better.

Zork comes out sword drawn. "Nobody calls me a coward, I have had 25 years of battle training, and I will fight to my every last breath to defend Mossflower, join us and you can too."

"I will not /join/ you," Emyuil spits scornfully. "I will, however, walk of my own accord on a similar path." His words and tone almost echo the personality of a certain silver white-cloaked fox...

DoraRose looks back into Emyuil's eyes. "Do you know what /I/ went through?! /I/ spent endless nights alone, freezing my tail off, searching for Stormfeather. /I/ crossed rivers, my only waking thought was avenging our baby sister. I would've let you come with me! It would've saved me. And now Stormfeather is here, in Mossflower, killing all he pleases. He's already murdered the wife and dibbun son of a friend of mine." She picks up Martin's sword, sheaths it, and dries her tears. "I am hunting Vladmir right now. And I don't care if you don't come." She takes Zarok's clawed paw and turns to go.

"I came to hunt Stormfeather. And I don't care who has to die to make him pay for his crimes. I passed through the land, killing evildoer after evildoer. I crossed rivers, aye, I searched...I've been out here for /seasons./" Emyuil flicks his sword in a quick circle and, without further speech, follows them.

DoraRose turns to her brother. "Papa would be ashamed." she would say more, but at that precise moment, a female rook drops in front of her. The bird has a simple, plain carved wooden skull hanging from a leather cord about its neck. Bowing, she says, "Greetings. I am Virginia, follower of Lenore Nightwing, hater of Vladmir Stormfeather and his ilk. My mistress has sent me to lead you to the fox's lair, DoraRose Strongheart, sister of LilyMoore Braveheart."

Zork smiles. "Lead us? 'Bout Time, lets go kill us a badgernapper."

"He would recognize that I am merely doing what I must," Emyuil hisses.

DoraRose narrows her eyes. "How do we know this isn't a trap?" She asks the bird, who merely repies, "You don't. You just have to trust me. Now come," Virginia turns, spreading her wings. "We must hurry."

Zarok bares his teeth at the birds and growls low in his throat. "Me no truzt you. Bird like you try /kill/ me an' Auntie Dorrozzze."

Virginia the rook smiles at the dibbun. "Wrong. The birds that attack you are working for Vladmir Stormfeather. My kinsbirds and I hate him, and will do whatever is needed to see him dead."

"Good," Emyuil says impatiently. "The more the merrier, but the fox is /mine/, understand?"

Zork nods. "If you say so, their are others to kill. As long as Oz is rescued, I don't care WHO kills Vladmir...I say we follow the bird"

DoraRose whips around and brings her face mere inches away from Emyuil's. "One: Don't order me around. Two: Yes, I hear you. And I'll let you have the final blow, for a reason I doubt you would understand." Turning to Virginia, the mouse nods. "We will follow you. Lead on, please." The rook lifts off with a small caw and heads off in the direction of the lair.

Zarok offers a cautious smile in return to the rook. "I rip froatzz out o' burd but not yourzzz."

Emyuil strides out of the area wordlessly. He may be a twisted, ruined, messed-up shell of a beast, but there's a kind of cruel majesty to him that can be percieved if you look at him with an open mind.

Zarok trots off, seeking and clutching DoraRose's paw in his own.

Zork nods and begins to follow them as well, sword drawn in case of danger or double-crossing by the bird. "How many are with Vladmir?"

Virginia calls over her shoulder, "You don't want to know. Just rest in the fact that my kin will take care of Vladmir's birds. Now hurry!" The rook flies ahead, leading the way, the small band of Allies following.

Darkwatcher was watching the scene the entire time. The black fox nods to himself and maneuvers through the treetops nimbly, for all the world appearing to be a deformed squirrel, following in the wake of the party.

Along the path to the base...

Zork frowns at the remains of Sorrlagg, a friend he had known for only a short amount of time. "Let us finish this battle" he sighs, "So no more have to die."

Zarok trots along the bridge happily, the short sword Sleepbringer, which he renamed 'Biter,' or rather, 'BITR' with a backwards 'R', resting on one shoulder.

Emyuil continues his measured stride, crossing the bridge slowly and implacably.

Darkwatcher drops from the trees and flits across the bridge spectrally, silently drawing Darkrunner and Shadowbolt from his greaves/leg sheaths.

DoraRose is keeping pace with Zarok, her bastard sword at her side and the Sword of Martin upon her back. Glancing around, she seems relaxed, but in reality she is like a wired spring, ready for battle. The rook Virginia flies overhead, calling back now, "There! You should be able to see it now."

"Good enough for me." Darkwatcher drifts ahead, and a large black crow silently falls into his wake.

Emyuil strides off after the merc, eying the suddenly appearing crow warily.

Zarok tightens his grip on DoraRose's paw and tugs ahead. "C'mon, let'z go!" He's like an excited dog.

Zork walks forward, not caring what danger he is putting himself into, only here to save his brother and protect the others. He leaves his fears behind and goes to face the unknown of Vlamdir's castle, with his allies and uhh...the half-rat to help.

DoraRose is tugged along with the lizard as more and more of the blackbirds with the carved wooden skulls appear in the sky. Rooks, crows, ravens and magpies...all wanting Vladmir dead.

The base....

Darkwatcher slips through the gates and stands in the courtyard, looking around. "Strange, they don't seem to know we're..." His jaw drops behind his mask as monitors seemingly rise from the ground. "Uuuh...Never mind."

Zork looks around. "What is going.....oh, guess it is time for a fight."

Emyuil flicks his blade with a swift rotation of the wrist, in a quick warrior's salute as the monitors advance. "Come...meet the Black Sword, and perish."

Zarok /knows/ these reptiles, and he draws his sword, holding it low, angled upward and out, the tip level with his shoulders, hissing softly and baring his fangs, but also drawing closer to DoraRose, a bit.../afraid./ It shows in his pitchdark eyes.

Virginia the rook caws, and half of the death's-head birds decend upon the lizards, cawing, pecking, and scratching. DoraRose draws the Sword of Martin, no fear in her eyes as she yells out a challenge: "Alright, you scaly slimebags, come to me! I am the daughter of the greatest Blacksmith and Weapons' master in Tuscani! Come and meet your fate! /TUSCANI!!/"

The monitors hiss and screech, roaring similar to how Zarok did several nights ago, slashing and hacking madly. "Die, zzzzcum of the woodzz!" A towering crimson reptile stands in the background, two swords on his back. Darkwatcher raises his emotionless voice, adding his own warcry to the mix. "STORM AND SHADOW!" He flips his right-paw blade into a reverse grip, holding the left one normally as he leaps into a deadly, efficent dance of artful slaughter.

Emyuil pauses before raising his voice in unison with his sister's. "TUSCANI!" He whirls his blade and battles forward into the ranks of the enemy.

Zarok pauses, at a loss for a warcry. He doesn't have one. After a moment, he yowls, "FISHIEZ!"

Darkwatcher is deep into the fray now, his daggers short compared to the monitors' primitive weapons, but he still cuts down reptile upon reptile.

DoraRose blocks the swing of a monitor, and she returns his favour, swinging Martin's fabled blade, fighting with the lizard. Back and forth they sway, and then...the lizard makes a fatal mistake. He slices her arm. The Bloodwrath courses through the mousemaid, and she becomes unstoppable. She kills the lizard with 1 quick thrust, then rushes to another monitor, unwittingly and accidentily abandoning Zarok, only seeing her enemies through the red mist clouding her sight.

Zork frowns, and picks up Zarok. "We need to keep you safe, little one" he slices a few lizards on his way, and trys to stay away from the bloodwrath mousemaid.

"Dorrozzze!" comes a distant, desperate cry from the young reptile. In the same instant, the bloodred, twin-sword-wielding lizard smashes into the warriormaid like a wrecking ball, looming over her and hissing balefully, preparing to finish her off.

"TUSCANI!" comes another shout from the mousemaid's brother, who whirls around and slashes upward, slicing a monitor open from abdomen to head. (Emyuil)

Darkwatcher fights alone now, in a ring of foebeasts, eyes grim and voice unheard now, all business, focused only on completing the task at paw.

DoraRose hollers incoherantly as she is knocked down. The Bloodwrath suddenly vanishes as she hears Zarok's voice. What has she done? Gazing up at the red lizard, she screams defiantly at him, refusing to die unheard..."/REDWALL!!!!/"

In the same instant, Zarok slithers free of Zork's grasp, tossing his sword aside as he leaps ferally towards the fallen mousemaid, the copper frying pan-helmet clattering to the ground as he hurtles through the air, revealing on the back of his head a black bandanna with a stylized mouse's, or possibly rat's skull pictured in white on its center, the reptile's vest flapping in the air to reveal the sixclaw spiral branded into his skin, as he roars long and loud, colliding with the crimson monitor--Golem Rakthor, the Chieftain of the Tribe that terrorized Zarok for so many seasons--like a commet, knocking the larger creature down onto the ground and spattering gore everywhere as Zarok tears savagely into him before pulling his head back with a clump of flesh in his bloodsoaked jaws, roaring triumphantly as Rakthor's eyes cloud forever--Zarok ripped his throat out.

Zork looks in shock at Zarok's Rage. "I....I'm impressed" he turns around to kill one of the larger lizards attack him, but the smaller ones run in fear of their leader being killed.

DoraRose looks in shock as the dibbun comes and, well...saves her life. She stands and places a paw on his head. "Thank you..." she whispers, then picks Martin's blade back up. The birds who wear carved skulls are wreaking devestation among the lizards.

Zarok nods distantly, veils of blood metaphorically and quite literally falling away from his eyes. He hugs DoraRose tightly, then dashes back to pick up Biter again.

Emyuil watches impassively and strides towards the smaller of the two buildings, where some of the monitors are fleeing to.

Darkwatcher pauses in the midst of the melee to gaze up at the larger building. "They could have archers up there; I'm going to make sure they don't get the chance to open fire." He sprints off towards it, Dethwing in his wake.

Zork looks around. "I don't see any archers, but I'll take your word for it" he ruthlessly charges a group of lizards. "I...will...find...OZZZZZZZZZZZIEEEEEEE!"

Zarok meanwhile hurls himself against the door of the smaller building desperately. "OPENZ!"

DoraRose reaches the door and looks at it for about 3 seconds, then calls over to Emyuil, "Brother! Did you bring Nightsong?"

Emyuil nods slowly and reaches behind his back, for a large sackcloth bundle. Unwrapping it, he reveals a large double-headed black battleaxe made of the same metal as the sword Nevermore. "Here." He steps forward, axe in his paws.

"Unkh-Unkh-Unkh!" Zarok throws himself into the door again and again, to no avail.

DoraRose flashes a small smile at her brother, sheaths Martin's sword, and takes the axe from his paws. "Thank you." Turning to the door, she studies it, figuring out where to whack it.

Emyuil glances to Zork. "Ah, perhaps that beast should take over."

Zork charges at the door with his own force, hoping it will work, he even slashes at it with the Blade of the Northwind Storms, but to no avail, even with more strength than the average badger, the door does not budge.

Zarok screeches, "FISHIEZ!" and hurls himself against the door, which caves in after Zork's onslaught.

Zork facepalms when the door falls over. "Really?"

No sign of anybeast...Zarok crouches at the middle of the floor with an ear to the ground as Emyuil checks the cells, calling, "Empty--" "GGAH!" "Well, /now/ empty." Zarok taps the floor with one footpaw. "It hollow!" he says excitedly.

DoraRose enters and taps the stone slab with her battleaxe. "I have a feeling that they're under here."

Zork lifts the rock.

Under the slab, in the tunnels...

Zarok drops lightly into the tunnel, gazing about nervously.

Darkwatcher appears behind the group as they enter the tunnels. "I cleared the tower, we're all good. Let's go." He advances through the tunnels, Emyuil following.

Farther in the dark...

Lenore caws, then attacks her (former) master, claws raking, beak stabbing angrily. "DIE, STORFEATHER!!" Edgar attacks the lizard holding Blisa.

DoraRose rushes foreward, weilding the axe of her father. "FOR LILY!!" she slays a lizard with 1 axe swing.

Zork charges at the guards of the fox. "GIVE...ME...OOOOOOOOOZZZZZZIIIIIIEEEEEE!!!!!!"

The monitors turn to defend, panickedly, the large one dropping Blisa on the floor. Zarok jumps into the fray and tears one of them open with Biter, confused as the reptile falls. "Why he no move?"

Oz watches a bit surprised, but only a little, the one monitor holding him drops hin as Oz oofs, the monitor gets a little uneasy with the sudden entrance of beasts.

Vladmir screams. He was suspicious of his spy, but this..."GAAAH!" He drops his sword and pulls out the bolas, flailing the steel globes desperately at his former compatriot. "DIE!"

Leon takes a chance and goes over to Oz to check on him, he frowns and looks up as all the beasts enter and then just mutters hopes he is not hurt in all this.

Oz looks at Leon and passses out.

Blisa screams as she is dropped and scrambles over to Darkwatcher, hoping he'll save her.

Emyuil takes a single massive step into the cavern and fells another lizard with a single slash. Then he sees..."Stormfeather."His words echo through the cavern. "You cannot escape justice." He pushes through the melee towards his enemy...

Lenore gasps and falls, the bolas breaking her spine.

Leon frowns, he tries to block all the noise out best he can, healer mode here.

Darkwatcher rolls down under a spear thrust and scoops up Blisa in his arms, setting her on his back and saying, "Hang on!" as he mops up the fight.

Lenore gasps again, blood flecking her beak as she whispers, "Gokukura...help..."

Staggering, Vladmir hurls the bolas at Zork, before gurgling and clutching at his throat.

Blisa clings to the mercenarie's back, closing her eyes.

The black fox slips between the ranks of fighters, stabbing with both blades as he goes, precise, artful.

Over it all, a loud, pained gurgle...And Vladmir folds limply and goes still, a hooked blade protruding from his throat...Lenore, with her last moments, had managed to pull it from his pouch and sink it into his neck. A mournful sigh, and the fox's reign of terror is ended forever.

Leon looks to see whom else is injuried, he frowns and looks at Zork, "You need to carry him if we get out of here" He points to Oz and goes to look at the bird Lenore and frowns, there is not too much he can do and even if he had his healer stuff , still not much he can do, he sighs and looks around still.

Zork sheathes his sword and faces the bolas, catching it by the wire and grinning. "Oh was I supposed to die?...looking for this?" he hurls the bolas and proceeds to throw it back at the fox with almost perfect aim. "Take that"

DoraRose has been sliced on her left cheek, and stabbed in multiple places, and she is losing blood fast. She collapsses to her knees, leaning on her axe.

In the same instant--"TUSCANI!" Emyuil leaps over a headless lizard and sinks his sword into Vladmir's already lifeless corpse before he can stop himself.

Leon sees Dorarose and quickly goes over to her to help her.

Zork hugs Oz still, paying no attention to the events around him. "Good to see you little bro, I'll never let something like this happen to you again"

Zarok spots the mousemaid's peril before any others, and he trots quickly over to her, unwrapping the black mouse-skull bandanna from over the back of his head and tying it over the wound on her cheek to staunch the blood flow

Lenore lets out 1 last shuddering breath...then dies. Edgar screams his first word in this tongue -- "LENORE!!" -- then is slain by the lizard he had been fighting. So dies Lenore Nightwing.

Blisa faints from terror, still clinging to Darkwatcher's back.

Zork picks up Oz carefully and begins walking away. "I don't think he can walk on his own...I'll take care of this"

DoraRose smiles up at Leon and places a paw on his cheek. "Leon..." then she faints, no, she is /so/ not dead, but she is in bad shape.

And here we had to log off...thanks for reading!