Adventures of the Cohort Ch. 03

"There the Gods contacted me. As I fell to the floor, a handsome, strong warrior scooped me up. He took me back to his home, nursing me back to health and restoring me to my senses. When I was fit he took it upon himself to instruct me of this world and through him the Gods contacted me. They asked for my help and I felt a great sense of belonging that I had never before experienced. I accepted without hesitation, and, well, here I am today."

"And what became of this warrior?" Mikael asked, eager to hear the end.

"I'm sat right here," Victor grinned, winking at him.

"You didn't pick up on that then Mikael, no?" Kristine teased him. "You thought some other 'handsome, strong warrior' had nursed Cassandra back to health and brought her into the Gods' fold?"

"Well, they might have done..." he said, feeling slightly embarrassed and folding his arms in protest. His companions laughed.

"Don't worry, Mikael," Cassandra said. "We'll put it down to heat-induced delirium. Your Sisters don't know what it's like, after all."

He laughed. "Quite. We'll see how well they cope in the burning desert."

I hate to interrupt, read Quintia's words as they swirled out in front of the group. But I sense Mikael's charm is ready. I fear we must go.

Victor nodded, suddenly solemn. "Indeed. We will have time for more joviality later, but for now we have a task to attend to."

"Well you best remember that," Lucinda winked at the warrior. "Because we haven't yet heard how you came to be here."

"Oh, I'm sure you will," Victor responded, cracking a smile. "But let us now concentrate on more important matters."

"Of course," the black-haired rogue replied, standing up and brushing her hands down the front of her tight armour. Even before such an important event as this, Mikael still could not help but stare at her stunning figure as it was encased in the close-fitting leather that snugly covered her long, slender legs, her tight stomach and the impressive swell of her large breasts. She looked at him and winked. He grinned, before turning away and preparing himself.

His companions, too, collected their minds, steeling themselves for the inter-planar journey ahead. He cleared his thoughts, probing outwards, readying himself for the unpleasant situation that was to come.

Soon they were gone.

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Mikael groaned as the oppressive heat washed over him once more. He wiped his brow with the back of his wrist, already feeling beads of sweat beginning to form as his body reacted to the stifling warmth. His third journey across the planes in two days had dulled the feeling of nausea that accompanied his first trip but the horrible sensation of the high temperature on his landing remained.

"The sooner we're done here, the better," Mikael sighed loudly, looking round as his Sisters appeared around him. They landed uncertainly, stumbling as they reappeared, made dizzy by the journey. Victor materialised nearby, puffing out his cheeks as the heat hit him.

After a few moments, Cassandra had arrived and the Cohort was ready. They moved off from the stone circle; their first priority was to get out of plain sight so as to remain undetected, and they did this quickly. Scampering down the steep side of the rocky hill, Mikael and his companions came to rest crouched low in the dusty haze. It would take a concerted effort for someone to spot them there.

"Well, where shall we look for the Inferno Rock?" Lucinda asked. "I don't really know much about this plane; I've not been here before."

Cassandra answered. "I would suggest we make our way to the city. When Mikael and I were here we did not come across it. The city is one of the places we did not look."

"Then we shall," Kristine nodded. "It sounds logical, though I hope we do not need to enter the city itself. That would prove somewhat of a problem."

Victor chuckled quietly. "Indeed, and that is an understatement. It is very well protected."

The Cohort shouldered their packs and moved off in the murky haze.

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It was as they travelled near the dusty road that they encountered the ragged band of humans. Met with immediate and violent resistance, the Cohort overcame them in a brief struggle, leaving their attackers wounded and begging for mercy on the dirty ground.

"And why should we give you mercy?" Kristine said, raising her broadsword menacingly. Mikael knew she would not cut someone down in cold blood, but they did not. "You attacked us. Why should I not end your misery here?"

"B... because we had no choice!" cried the man pathetically. "You're trying to take us back. And we won't go back!"

The paladin lowered her sword slightly. "Back where? Where do you think we want to take you?"

"The slave camp," the man whimpered. "We are escapees and we will not return!"

"Slaves? You're escaped slaves?"

"Y... yes..." the man stuttered.

Kristine's weapon lowered immediately, the rest of the Cohort following suit and doing the same. Their mood changed completely as they realised these people were victims, not enemies. Their attack had been provoked by the desperation of being discovered, not malice or intent to harm, and it was the Cohort's place to protect people like this. Not injure them.

"Let me help," Melissa said, rushing forwards, the guilt obvious on her face. The slaves made a feeble attempt to withdraw, wounded and tired as they were, but were rendered near immobile by their weakness and the damage the Cohort had inflicted.

Mikael reached inside himself, attempting to tap the well of healing energy that normally flowed around him, hoping to aid his Sister as she restored them. He was briefly taken aback as he realised its absence, before once more recalling the dominance that flame held over this plane. As he watched, Melissa pulled a small flask of liquid from her pouch and tipped a little of it into her hand. This she sprinkled delicately over the wounded slaves in front of them and at once Mikael felt the discharge of powerful magic. Clearly she had come prepared for the absence of her healing magic.

"Don't move," she soothed as she continued to sprinkle the liquid on the slaves. "This will help you."

Mikael could see that it was; the wounds they had so recently inflicted slowly closed, and it became obvious that the slaves were being infused with tremendous energy where before there had been none.

They looked round in amazement, firstly at Melissa, then at the rest of the Cohort, before finally staring wide-eyed at one another. The man who had spoken to them could not tear his eyes from his hands. Bloodied, painful sores had given way to smooth skin, healed and complete as if he had seen no hardship in his life at all.

"Thank you," he gasped, still taken aback by what had just happened. "Thank you so much!"

He jumped to his feet, flinging his arms around Melissa and pulling her close. He sobbed a little into her wavy brown hair, his tension released as his pain ebbed away.

After a brief moment he pulled away, turning back to his fellow slaves with a grin, before once more facing Mikael and his companions and bowing graciously. "We are forever in your debt. Whatever you need, we shall do it."

"We need only information," Victor spoke up, the man's eyes moving to rest on the imposing warrior. "Do you know of an Inferno Rock and where it might be located?"

The man's face dropped and sadness washed over the faces of his companions.

"It is what we are running from," he said tearfully. "They are killing us in droves, using the power of our deaths to feed the Black Stone. The slave master told us exactly what our deaths were for as if we were supposed to find pride in it."

"It is in the slave camp?" Mikael said, taken aback. "And they're killing slaves?"

The man nodded feebly.

"Then we must stop them!"

"Indeed," said Kristine, grimly. "We have no time to lose. Cassandra, do you know the way?"

The shaman replied with a look of fierce determination in her eyes. "Of course. I shall lead us there."

"Wait for us by the stone circle on the mountain," Kristine said, turning back to the slaves and gesturing. "It is in that direction. Follow the road, though do not actually take it. When you arrive, conceal yourselves. We will return for you."

The man bowed again as he gathered the other slaves around him. "We shall. Good luck."

The Cohort nodded to one another, and Cassandra began to stride away. Mikael and his Sisters, along with Victor, followed her hurriedly. There was no time to lose.

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The slave camp was a hive of activity and fear. The Cohort and their companions sat perched at the top of a hill overlooking the sprawling encampment, and looked upon the ramshackle buildings and the people that swarmed among them with pity and disgust. Pity for the slaves being hoarded into groups and cut down in front of their families, and disgust at the conditions and the barbarity forced upon them by their captors.

As Mikael watched, a family of slaves were wrenched from a dirty hut and dragged out into the middle of the courtyard, the other slaves shying away as the family was cut down, Firebound swords slicing through their emaciated flesh. At their deaths a large obsidian stone glowed brightly for a second, its clean surface radiating energy, before the power discharged. It had grown, however, and a small group of elemental warriors hacked the new pieces from its tremendous bulk.

"The Inferno Rock," Lucinda hissed under her breath. "They're using the deaths of those slaves to enhance its size and then cutting new charms from it."

Melissa replied quietly, distress at what they were seeing evident in her voice. "They're equipping an army! Scorch's Point may only be able to support a small portal every few days but if each soldier has a charm they can send an entire legion!"

"Then we must act now," Kristine growled. "Not only for the sake of those slaves but for the sake of our home. If these amulets are created then an invasion will take place, and the nations of our world are just not ready for such a war."

Victor nodded. "I agree. It is my duty to protect Scorch's Point and prevent an elemental invasion. This is the best method of doing so; if I wait until they come pouring through it will already be too late."

"Then we attack," Mikael breathed, anger at the monstrous slaughter in front of him growing within his soul.

"First we need a plan," Lucinda said. "And we need one quickly."

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Mikael and Ria'torr slipped nimbly down the hillside, concealing themselves as best they could. They were not too concerned about being spotted, though; the camp was too much in chaos to notice some warriors slipping around its perimeter. They would go undetected.

As they reached the base of the hill, they readied their bows, each hitching an arrow and picking a target. They were to attack from the barracks side, forcing their way into the camp and cutting down any enemy they came across. Their companions would each be attacking from another direction; Kristine and Melissa from the slave pens, Lucinda and Cassandra from the workhouse and Victor and Quintia from the graveyard. Each marked a corner of the camp and as such made the perfect points of assault. They could not allow the Inferno Rock to be taken away as they attacked and so a four-pronged movement was the ideal solution -- the elementals would have nowhere to run with it.

Mikael grimaced slightly as he pondered the task ahead of them. It was dangerous indeed, particularly at the start. To prevent the Inferno Rock's removal they needed to not only attack from different directions but to co-ordinate those attacks to be simultaneous. A lot could go wrong when the numbers in each group were a mere two.

Mikael looked at Ria'torr as they crouched out of sight. She nodded; they were ready. He sent out a magical shiver, so faint as to be undetectable to one who was not searching for it but powerful enough to not be an accident. He had felt two such shivers already and knew it was nearly time. Three groups were now in place, their spellcasters alerting the others, and they waited for their last two companions to get into position. That final shiver followed seconds later.

A dull roar filled Mikael's ears at the tenseness of the situation, his body raring to attack as he saw more slaves cut down, but his mind called him back. It would do no good to charge forwards now, however desperate the situation; he would be killed and their world would be doomed. His muscles coiled in preparation and he saw Ria'torr doing the same, her sharp elven eyes taking the visual clue that the time was near.

Suddenly, a bright flash of flame seared into the paddock, scorching two soldiers where they stood. In a moment the spell was gone and two small piles of cinders were all that remained of their target. Instantly, a warcry went up and a flurry of movement burst into Mikael's sight.

His own voice joined the cry and he leapt to his feet, letting loose an arrow and charging into the fray. Beside him he could hear Ria'torr's bow singing, the soldiers ahead of him dropping like insects as they were pierced by her relentless arrows. He fired off another shot before slinging his bow across his back and withdrawing his twin longswords, their metallic cry blissful to his ears.

Two soldiers came at him, swords raised, and he parried their assaults. He ducked, swiping outwards and slicing open the belly of one, before spinning back to face the other. Unwilling to be drawn into a lengthy swordfight he kicked upwards, connecting with his foe's soft stomach. The man hunched over, winded, and Mikael swiped downwards with his other sword, cutting through his body.

He spun around, eager to make headway towards the stone, but his progress was halted as four more attackers burst towards him. Two fell in quick succession, arrows in their necks, but the remaining two reached him and hacked outwards. Again Mikael dodged the blows, his two swords swinging outwards and connecting with the chests of his adversaries. Looks of horror crossed their faces as their chests were ripped open, and they fell forwards, the life quickly draining from them.

Mikael turned again, gesturing for Ria'torr to follow. She was already doing so and together they rounded the barracks. They were empty, the soldiers contained within having already been vomited forth into protecting the stone. Shrieks filled the air as the Firebound protecting the stone began to desperately hack down the slaves around them.

Rage filled Mikael at the sound, and as another warrior ran at Mikael and he stabbed outwards, impaling the woman on the end of his sword. She shrieked and collapsed, her own weapon dropping from her hand, and he kicked her corpse from the end of his blade.

He glanced up at the stone once more. It was surrounded by Firebound and, though he was making good progress against his current foes, he was not looking forward to meeting the red-armoured warriors. And there's the elementals, too, he grimaced, swiping outwards and felling another enemy. As he watched, another slave was dragged to the stone and cut down. The elementals were clearly trying to imbue the stone with as much power as they could before they withdrew it from the melee.

"Shoot the Firebound!" Mikael cried at Ria'torr, gesticulating wildly in their direction. "I can handle these soldiers. Kill the Firebound!"

The elf nodded at him and immediately loosed an arrow at her new targets. One Firebound screamed and collapsed, Ria'torr's missile hitting true, but Mikael knew they would not all be that easy. The Firebound had reactions to rival the Cohort's own and Ria'torr would not find as much success in shooting them as she did with normal soldiers.

Mikael was instantly drawn into another fight, two more soldiers spinning towards him. He dealt with them quickly and easily, steadily making progress towards the Inferno Rock.

A flash caught his eye and he looked up to see his Sisters making their own way into the paddock. He breathed a sigh of relief as his sword flashed outwards, cutting down another foe. Lucinda and Cassandra hacked their way through the thronged warriors around them, Lucinda's swords a blur as Cassandra sent waves of flaming death at their enemies.

On the other side of the paddock Melissa and Kristine had appeared, Melissa clutching numerous small leather pouches. Her magic was useless here, but she was not, and she threw the pouches at her onrushing foes. Mikael watched on as the small brown sacks exploded in a ball of white fury, the holy magic contained within them searing their enemies with cleansing light. Kristine, however, was doing most of the damage, her anger inflamed by the injustices before them, and her sword reflected that rage. It was a keening razor of death, enemy after enemy sliced upon its deadly blade as she strode purposefully towards the stone.

Mikael had almost reached it now and finally one of the Firebound rose to meet his attack. The man's swords arced upwards and Mikael only just managed to block the speedy blades, air brushing his face as the sword passed him.. He ducked out of the way as another slice missed his head by fractions of an inch but thrust forwards at the same time. The Firebound dodged his own attack and they circled one another for a few seconds.

The warrior lunged at Mikael again but this time he was ready. He swung one sword round as he side-stepped and the warrior, off-balance, raised his own swords to parry. He did not account for Mikael's second blade, however, and soon found it thrust deeply into his own midriff. A look of utter surprise entered his eyes as Mikael withdrew the sword, blood pouring out onto the dusty ground below. He collapsed, still shocked, and by the time his eyes closed Mikael had already moved on.

Another Firebound met his blades and they clanged together loudly. A look of fierce determination was in his foe's eyes, and Mikael could only parry as she relentlessly struck at him. As he deflected the blows he saw another Firebound fall to his left, shrieking as an arrow pierced his neck.

The woman was distracted by the gruesome scene for only a moment but that was all the opening that Mikael needed. With a word of power he thrust outwards a bolt of flame from the tips of his fingers, surrounding the woman in burning death. Her screams were short-lived as she was quickly turned into ash and Mikael once again strode onwards. Ria'torr followed, her elven face twisted in concentration and her arrows streaking outwards at an amazing pace.

Mikael glanced upwards again. Lucinda and Cassandra had also made progress towards the stone, the Firebound engaging them now, too. Lucinda fought one in a viciously quick melee, their swords glinting as they clashed together. She appeared to have the measure of her foe, though, and Mikael knew that the soldier did not have long to live. Cassandra, meanwhile, was striking at her enemies with magic. Shimmering flame encased her hands and her hair and cloak billowed with the energies suffusing her. Fire burst from her outstretched palms at regular intervals, searing their enemies each and every time.

Kristine and Melissa had also gained ground and Mikael was pleased to see that they, too, were coping. Kristine's broadsword swung it great arcs, slicing through opponents every time it cut through the air. Melissa stood behind her, her quarterstaff cracking into her assailants and her eyes glowing with hardened resolve.

With a flash of blinding light Quintia introduced herself to the battle, and Mikael was glad to see her arrive. She and Victor had taken a while to reach the scene but he was relieved to see them now. Like Cassandra, vicious columns of flame incinerated all before her as she strode confidently towards the stone, the energy she controlled crackling in the air. Victor was all around her, his sword striking out repeatedly as he used the power of his lineage to dissipate. He would strike a foe, become smoke and then re-materialise on the other side of the blue-haired Sensei to engage another. Their enemies could not get near his Sister, nor strike down the skilled warrior who assailed them.