Adventures of the Cohort Ch. 03

"Very well," Victor nodded, sitting down again. "Your logic, whilst upsetting, is impeccable."

"Then it must be one of my Sisters or me," Mikael said. "And if you require stealth then perhaps either Lucinda or I would be the best candidate."

Lucinda nodded towards him. "I would suggest it be you, Mikael. You possess a broader range of talents than myself and yet are my equal in the silent arts."

"Good to hear you finally admit it," Mikael smiled.

The black-hared rogue laughed. "Well, nearly my equal at least. It ought to be you who accompanies Cassandra."

After a brief round of agreements it was swiftly decided that Mikael would indeed journey with Cassandra. He was the most versatile of their group and as such offered the best chance of success when such limited numbers were involved.

"When do we start?" he asked.

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Mikael and his Sisters stood in front of the large stones, their immense size more apparent when their obsidian surfaces contrasted against the brightness of day. He readjusted his swords in their scabbard and checked the small pack he had brought. It contained plenty of water and a little food.

Drawing his cloak around him, he stepped forwards, towards his Sisters. They were all armoured, too, though they would not be coming with him. They were to remain here and await his return with the charms.

Cassandra looked at him with a nervous smile. She was wearing her armour, which Mikael had not had a chance to fully study before, and looked a formidable fighter. She wore a bodice of shining crimson leather entwined with mystical patterns of reddish gold. Around her waist was a small brown belt with her pack and a small knife that was not used for fighting, and covering her legs was a short skirt, also red. It had a slight slit in the side to better enable movement but a most-appreciated side effect was that her shapely legs were revealed by the clothing. Red sandals of the same leather as her bodice weaved up her slender calves and a long, red cloak bordered with orange completed the outfit. She looked every inch a fire specialist, resplendent in red and gold.

From her waist hung a glittering sabre, its metallic sheen tinted with the faintest swirl of orange, as if an intense fire were burning just under its surface. He was aware, though, that most of her battles were conducted with magic not melee and he did not expect it to see much use.

"Are you ready?" she said, holding out the charm for him to wear.

"I am," he replied, taking the item and putting it on. Almost instantly a strange feeling washed through him. "What do we do?"

"Open your mind to the charm," Cassandra said. "Command it to take you to the Plane of Fire. It doesn't sound very mystical, but it will work. Trust me."

He smiled. "Things don't need to sound mystical to be so. I believe you."

"Then good luck," Kristine said loudly. "I would offer you my prayers but that would suggest doubt. I have none."

"Thank you, Sister. Your confidence in my abilities is noted." He chuckled.

"Your abilities are well deserving of my confidence," the paladin responded, "and your guide is a very capable woman. Do not be nervous, the two of you shall be fine."

Cassandra raised her hands. "And with that I suppose we should leave. You will await our return here?"

"Indeed we shall," Victor said back, placing his hand on her shoulder. He nodded at Mikael, before returning his gaze to Cassandra. "Two of us at least shall remain here at all times. We shall see you both then."

"We won't be long," Mikael smiled, before closing his eyes. He probed outwards with his mind to find the charm, his thoughts relaxed. He located it at once; a burning font of power located around his neck, intertwining his being with the sorceries contained within. Immersing himself in the fiery energies at its core, he commanded them to take him through the portal.

In a flash of bright light, he was gone.

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Mikael felt as if he were spinning through the air. All around him was a golden nimbus of light and he could not see beyond its thick consistency. He thought he was falling one moment, rising the next. Nausea swelled up inside him as he was pushed one way then the other.

His head was still spinning as his body slammed into the ground. He became aware of himself lying in a crumpled heap, his cloak lying haphazardly across his body, his limbs sprawled clumsily and a dull ache suffusing his soul. Cassandra stood nearby, her landing clearly far more graceful and she looked at him with a broad smile.

He climbed to his feet, brushing the dust from his leather armour, and looked around. They were stood in a small outcrop not too dissimilar to Scorch's Point, though decidedly smaller, on the top of a small hill. The air was hot; very hot, and very dry. Mikael immediately felt the urge to drain one of his water containers but suppressed the desire until he actually needed to drink.

Hills rolled all around them, a dusty brown colour, populated only very sparsely by sickly-looking red trees. No leaves grew on their twisted branches, and Mikael could not tell whether they were alive or dead.

His eye was caught by a column of smoke in the middle-distance and he gasped audibly as he noticed a large city. Smoke billowed in great clouds from its centre and even from this distance Mikael could see the hustle and bustle of its busy streets.

"There's a city here?" Mikael whispered, awed by the spectacle.

"Of course," Cassandra said more loudly. "The Elemental Lords are not uncivilised. They may be aggressive, territorial warmongers but they are not barbarians. This city is one of many on this world."

"How large is this place?"

"Not as large as our world, most certainly, but large enough for a sizeable population." She brushed her red braids away from her face as a hot wind picked up, causing a slight cloud of dust to swirl around their feet.

"And what does that population consist of?" Mikael asked, wondering what they would come up against.

"Well, the elemental warriors are beings made out of the essence of fire itself. This is their homeland and we shall see many of them, I'm sure. But there are plenty of races from our world, too. Some are here voluntarily, the Firebound warriors you fought before being a prime example, but others are here as slaves."

"Slaves?"

She smiled grimly. "But of course. What kind of warlords would these Elemental Lords be if they didn't keep slaves? Perhaps we can help them when all of us are present but for now you must forget about their plight. We have a task to attend to and we must not be swayed from it. Those charms will be ours."

"Indeed," Mikael agreed, his mind clouded with thoughts of the slaves. "Where to?"

They set off at a slow pace down the hill, constantly vigilant of their surroundings. Mikael had originally been worried about an elemental presence in the stones they had arrived at but he was swiftly reassured as no attack came. Clearly the Elemental Lords were not expecting warriors to come through from the other direction.

The dusty air was unpleasant to breathe in and Mikael found himself constantly wiping his face in order to rid himself of it. It stung his eyes and his nostrils and he realised with annoyance that it was picking up. A small dust storm was settling upon them. He grimaced; he was not going to enjoy it.

He drew his cloak closer around him as the wind whipped up, hot air buffeting his face and drying his skin. Cassandra, too, wrapped herself tightly in her own cloak, attempting to cover her face from the stinging blasts.

They hurried forwards, unable to see much beyond a few feet in front of them, aware that at any moment they might run into trouble but reluctant to stay within the storm. Their feet crunched on the dusty ground and their cloaks billowed in the arid gale.

Great, Mikael thought as his cloak fluttered again, another wall of scorching air smashing into him. Just great.

They hunkered down as they moved forwards, eager to leave the dust cloud but not eager to take the full brunt of the blistering wind as they did so. Mikael did not even know what this dust was; it was not sand, that much was certain. Where sand had a rich golden colour, and where Mikael could have appreciated this sort of weather were they in a desert, this was not the same. It was a thick, cloying dust, the ground arid but not sandy.

At length, the dust storm weakened and Mikael and his companion slowly straightened up. It was still fierce, but at least it no longer blinded them, though they continued to clutch their cloaks tightly to prevent the sting of the winds.

Suddenly, Mikael became aware of a faint hissing. He raised his hand to grasp Cassandra's shoulder. She nodded, having also heard the sound, and they stood for a moment in silence, attempting to establish the direction of its origin.

The dust storm faded quickly now, disappearing almost as fast as it had arrived. Mikael was able to see further and further into the distance, until he at last set eyes upon something that caused a shiver to run down his spine.

A giant snake lay in their path, its eyes trained resolutely upon them. They burned a bright red, almost demonic in their intensity, and it flicked out a long, black tongue. It was of a pale gold colour, its many scales shimmering in the strong sunlight, and its head as wide as his shoulders. It began to uncoil as it regarded them coldly, and Mikael guessed it was at least fifty feet long.

He saw Cassandra tense beside him as she laid eyes upon it, too. "Um... fuck," he whispered.

"Just what we needed," she breathed back, trying not to anger the serpentine behemoth that now started to edge towards them.

Mikael grimaced. "I think we'll have to fight it. If we run, it'll strike. If we stay still, it'll strike."

"I fear you are right," she said, balling her hands into fists, her stare trained on the huge serpent. "When shall we start?"

"Now!" Mikael cried, leaping towards the snake. He tapped into the well of magic in his core and found only one thread there - that of fire. Not too surprising, he thought to himself. The Elemental Lords would cast off only the magical element of fire.

Seizing it, he summoned a fireball, throwing it with a grunt towards the snake. It crashed into the serpent's face, causing it to recoil, and Mikael took the opportunity to withdraw his twin longswords.

They arced outwards, smashing into the beast's body with incredible speed, but Mikael was horrified to see them bounce harmlessly off its thick hide. The creature turned to him hatefully, withdrawing its head so as to strike.

It was driven backwards by a beam of pure flame and Mikael glanced over at Cassandra to see her eyes burning brightly. Fire shot forth from her hands and the snake was engulfed in the raging inferno.

It retreated slightly, hurt but not beaten, before lunging forwards once more at Mikael. He jumped out of the way; slicing upwards with one of his swords into what he hoped was its softer underbelly.

Indeed it was so and the beast jolted aside as the blade cut flesh. The blade had not struck deeply but at least it had struck, and Mikael could see a faint trail of blood soaking into the dusty ground as the snake passed over it.

With a cry he lunged forwards again, once more launching a bolt of fire at the titanic serpent's eyes. It hunched backwards another time, glowering at him demonically, and bared its fangs. It hissed again, beginning to uncoil its body further as it slithered around them.

It circled them now and Mikael moved back to stand with Cassandra. He could feel the magical power welling within her, but whilst the energies that suffused himself and Quintia were usually of myriad tastes and colours, Cassandra's was of a distinctly scorched flavour. Where Melissa - who also used only one type of magic - radiated a powerful white glow and the feeling of calm serenity when drawing power, Cassandra burned with the fierce heat of the sun.

With a flash she sent another stream of fire at the enraged snake and once more it recoiled into the sand. It flipped over slightly, attempting to avoid the scalding heat, and Mikael took the opportunity to leap forward. With a small spell he propelled himself through the air on a wave of flame, covering far more ground than he otherwise would have done.

He landed on the snake's underbelly and immediately thrust his swords downward. They plunged into its soft flesh and it twisted violently, desperately trying to shake the blades loose. Mikael was thrown off, pulling his swords out as he plummeted to the ground, and the beast once more looked upon them. Blood poured in great rivers from the wound, however, and Mikael knew that it was weakening.

It struck at them again, and Mikael and his companion dived out of the way as its vicious head flashed past. Once more he cut into its exposed underbelly, and once more he drew blood.

Cassandra repeated her earlier attack, raging heat causing the snake to shirk away, and again Mikael took the opportunity to cut into its tough flesh. It began to grow slower as its blood seeped into the dusty ground and its life force ebbed away.

At length it collapsed onto the ground, its energy spent as its blood flowed in torrents. Mikael relaxed, dropping his head with the exhaustion of the fight, and his swords clattered onto the ground.

"Watch out!" he heard Cassandra cry, and he looked up with horror to see the snake arching toward him once more. He dived out of the way just in time and the creature missed his head by inches. It smashed into the ground, its final attack wasted, and the burning intensity of its eyes faded into dull brown.

Mikael slumped fully onto the ground and was joined by Cassandra. She, too, collapsed onto the dust, and breathed out heavily.

"By the holy fucking Gods..." he sighed, gulping in air. "Fucking hell."

Cassandra giggled softly. "Indeed. But I am glad I was with such a capable warrior."

"As am I," he smiled. "But still: fuck."

Cassandra laughed as she sprang to her feet, sweeping her red braids back over her shoulder, some of which had scattered over her face during the course of the fight. She reached down, Mikael taking her outstretched hand, and she hauled him into a standing position.

He sheathed his swords and dusted off his armour, before turning back to her.

"Do you think that beast might have a nest?" he asked, a thought entering his mind.

She looked at him questioningly. "I would think so. Why?"

"Because if it gave us a fight like that it may have killed before. And where there are bodies, there could be charms."

"Ah, of course," she agreed. "Good idea. We shall look."

It did not take them long to find the nest. It was over the crest of the next hill, hidden from plain sight by a copse of the twisted, red trees, but clear to one who was actively looking for it.

They walked down the side of the hill, wary of any more attacks, before reaching the nest and climbing inside. It was large, several soft, leathery eggshells lying scattered inside it, the young they contained having grown old and left many years before judging by the wind-worn appearance of the fragments.

In the corner lay a pile of bones and the two of them approached it carefully. Mikael reached out with his mind, probing the area for anything magical, and a few spots of power caught his attention.

"Here," he said, lifting a charm from a mound of dust. "Here's one."

"And another," Cassandra said, reaching into the ribcage of a creature Mikael could see was not familiar to him. She wrenched out a charm.

After a brief search they climbed out of the nest, having found three charms in total, the snake clearly a prolific hunter of the locals. Cassandra placed them gently in the small pouch by her waist.

"Three more needed," Cassandra said with a smile, tightening the pouch again to make sure the charms would not fall out.

Mikael scanned the horizon for somewhere that might contain some charms. "And now to find them. Where can we look?"

They walked for a short while, and when they crested the next hill they stopped to examine their surroundings. Cassandra placed a hand on his shoulder to get his attention.

"How about there?" the shaman said, pointing to a small encampment hidden amongst the scrub. A haze of smoke mingled with the dust to help obscure it and Mikael could see numerous figures distantly moving around inside.

"Worth a try," he nodded. "Shall we go?"

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They approached the encampment carefully, making sure that they stayed low to the ground and moved behind hills and trees to avoid being spotted. If it was indeed a waystation for warriors then they certainly did not want to make themselves known.

Soon they were close enough for a better look, and they slowly climbed a hill that stood next to the camp. Lying flat on the dusty ground, Mikael and his companion shifted to the crest, their eyes roving over the run-down collection of buildings.

"It doesn't look particularly well looked after," Mikael whispered, attempting to see any sign of life.

"It doesn't need to be," Cassandra replied, raising her hand to shade her eyes from the burning sun. "These are warriors, after all, not aristocracy."

Mikael shrugged, and renewed his efforts to spot some movement. "True."

"There," Cassandra said slowly, gesturing with her raised hand towards one of the larger buildings. A flicker of flame shot from its entrance and a humanoid figure emerged.

Mikael's eyes widened. He had never before seen an elemental warrior but he supposed this was what one looked like. It was shaped like a man but made entirely out of fire, its head, its arms, its legs; all were a burning inferno that stood to mock his own frail, human nature. It wore no armour but did carry a long, curving sword of dull silver, light glinting forebodingly off the dark surface.

"How many of them are there?" Mikael asked, his muscles tensing as he grew ready to fight. "Enough for the charms?"

"Well we have to make sure that these warriors are carrying the charms in the first place," Cassandra said. "Otherwise our efforts will be wasted."

As Mikael watched, another figure moved to join the elemental warrior. This one was human and Mikael recognised her armour immediately. It was the same he had seen upon the Firebound that he fought at Scorch's Point.

"They're certainly dressed the right way, but do you want me to get closer?" he said softly.

"If you can, it would be ideal. If not, then do not worry yourself; we will find another way."

"Don't worry, I can," Mikael whispered, slowly shifting back down the dusty mound.

He reached its bottom and edged slowly around the base, careful to ensure that his footsteps made no sound. A faint haze of dust rose in the air and he appreciated the spot that they had been watching from; he could no longer see Cassandra through its obscuring cloud.

Gradually and deliberately he crept around the hill, making sure to keep low in order to prevent being spotted. Eventually, he had moved around far enough to see the first of the low buildings, and he paused to check his surroundings.

Finding nothing, he moved forwards again and his eye was caught by a slight movement in one of the buildings. As he watched, a man, also wearing the armour that signalled him as a Firebound, emerged from the doorway. Mikael looked closely and, sure enough, there hung a charm around the man's neck. He moved quickly and silently back up the hill, rejoining Cassandra.

"They've got them," he whispered. "These must be warriors looking to go through the stones."

The beautiful redhead narrowed her eyes in thought. "This is probably where they wait. They may not need Scorch's Point to draw power if they possess charms of their own but they must have somewhere to gather prior to an attack."