Mageslayer Ch. 06

"I uh... Got this rose. For some reason... I have a headache, I need to... Go sleep." She mumbled, putting a palm to her forehead. Lori titled her head, Maddie was acting slightly strange, but then Lori realized she probably wasn't used to not remembering things. Either way, the druidess began to make her way to her shed, and Lori began to depart, walking towards the manor proper.

After a few seconds, she tensed up. She felt something, danger, a threat. It was coming from her bond, her master was in danger. Her fur bristiled as she broke into a full sprint, and she soon heard the grunts of fighting and the clash of metal on metal. Fuck. She didn't take long to reach the manor courtyard, and she saw guards fighting guards. One side was outnumbered, badly. There were several horses missing from the stables, and one was lying on the ground, bleeding from its flank. There were three dozen men fighting, and another twenty or so injured or dead. From what she figured, one side had around two dozen, and the other only one.

The outnumbered side was losing, they also seemed mostly outskilled. She glanced towards the stables to see a small figure huddled in one of the stalls. Sam. The child raised a shaky hand towards one of the fighters on the winning side, and glanced pleadingly at Lori, his intention was clear. She unsheathed her claws as one of the guards noticed her, shouting out, distracting one of the remaining attackers as they were stabbed through the throat. She heard sounds of fighting from inside as well and figured that given the positioning, the two dozen were trying to prevent entrance, acting as defenders. "She's in a bad fucking mood." She shouted before rushing forward, replacing the spot of the slain attacker and in the same motion raising her hand, almost like an uppercut, her claws piercing the chain links of the warrior's armor as his extended arm ended up impaled by her viciously fast strike, causing him to lose grip of his blade still stuck in his earlier opponent. She kept him mostly in place with her claws stuck in him, and as another defender made a trust towards her shoulder she shifted her footing to the side and raised her other arm, catching the blade between her claws and directing it to the first man's own throat, causing a satisfying gurgle of blood to leak from him as she sheathed her claws for a moment to free her hands, leaning forwards and biting into the wrist of the second man, causing a surprised scream and another dropped blade.

She pulled her head back, spitting the blood of the guard out into his own face, causing him to stumble back. He tripped, landing with a heavy thud on his back and clutching at his wrist, still screaming. She whirled around to see another defender advancing on a prone attacker, and sent an arcane spike clean through his neck. Her ears swiveled as she heard someone approaching her from behind, and she crouched as she twirled, extending her arm with her claws once more unsheathed, slashing at the back of the charging man's knee as he swung a longsword just over her head. She let him trip over her, twisting the both of them to hear a distinct crack when he hit his head on the ground.

Once more her ears swiveled as she recognized another threat, and she carried her momentum into a roll, dodging another strike as she regained her footing, thrusting forward towards her assailant's throat only to wince as she felt her fist make solid connection with a wooden targe, her claws penetrating easily, but not long enough to meet the man's flesh as she felt a sharp pain following as he jerked the targe up, knocking her off balance as she was pulled forwards, only to feel a more subtle pain on her flank, feeling the cut of metal and the warm dripping of her own blood. She sheathed her claws as she swiveled to avoid a mortal wound, stumbling to the side as she launched a blast of force from her now sparking aura, hitting the tip of his sword and driving it with his arm towards the ground.

Why the fuck was her aura sparking already? She felt a bit tired, but was she really that drained from her long nights? No, she must have expended a lot of it at the Rose manor, shit. She took the opening to step on the flat of the blade, forcing it out of his hand as he grunted in pain, bringing her arm around to once more reveal her claws, stabbing into his flank as he failed to bring his shield fully around in time. She stepped back, sheathing her claws as he clutched at his now bleeding side, the sword on the ground forgotten. He murmured a curse before collapsing to his knees, losing consciousness as Lori took a moment to pant, keeping her guard but not noticing any other warrior advancing on her. She spared a glance at her left side where she saw the red slice along her, trickling a not insignificant amount of blood. There was a dull pain there, but it wasn't too deep, she brushed a finger against it, wincing as she did. It wasn't anything that would hurt her long term, just a flesh wound, but she'd need it bandaged and ideally cleaned. Healed if she could find someone with the magic needed. Looking back at the fight in front of her, the sudden disruption she caused had an effect, and the numbers were about even on both sides now, with the attackers fighting with positive momentum, as the defenders were trying to disengage.

Satisfied with her assessment of the battle, she moved towards the man she had left on the ground a few moments prior. He was still clutching his bleeding wrist, writhing as he blinked blood out of his eyes. She stepped over him, straddling his torso and staring at his face. He was surprised, and a flash of fear filled his expression and scent. She allowed her aura to flow through her, channeling a spark of it as her eyes began to glow. Calling on her fae ancestry to cast a charm, almost as potent as a nymph's. It was an ability she used sparingly, since the feeling of charming others was addicting, as bad as any drug, but it was powerful. So she was surprised when the glow faded, her charm ended, and the man beneath her didn't seem even slightly affected. He didn't have an aura she could sense, and based on the slight scent of arousal she caught from him due to their placement, he certainly wasn't a bastion of will either. She grumbled to herself, seeing as he tried reaching for a dagger at his waist, silencing his grunts of pain with a slash along his throat.

Lori rose to her feet, looking back to the remaining guards, seemingly the defenders had been fully driven off, several of them retreating inside. She looked towards one of the guards as she approached the slumped corpse of the man with her crystalized aura impaling his neck, grabbing the shard and once more incorporating it into her reserve. "Lori just got back. Explain to her what the fuck is going on, and where Eter is." She snapped out in a commanding tone, slicing a strip of cloth from the downed man's tunic after pulling up his armored sleeve, wrapping it around her midriff to make a functional, if temporary, bandage.

"Mi-Mistress Lori. The Marshal and his traitors are attempting to take over the estate. We're not entirely sure, we were all outside and tried to get in to aid Lord Eter. We think he's holding up with some other loyalists somewhere in the manor." The man snapped to attention, speaking with a nervous degree of respect and awe. Lori had to think for a moment about who the Marshal was, before realizing that was Eric's actual title, she just always knew him as the guard captain. Not bothering to mumble more than a simple acknowledgement, she dashed inside the manor, pausing for a moment to catch the sulfuric scent of arcane magic, following it to her master. She saw some slumped bodies on her way, but it seemed the initial skirmishes had just about died down, and she avoided the scent of men as best she could on her way, avoiding running into anyone else. She found Eter in the dining hall, jumping past a makeshift barricade to the surprise of several guards.

The room had been fortified, tables and chairs had been flipped to form barricades around the various entrances to the central room, easily two dozen guards, more lightly armed and armored than those outside, were stationed throughout the room. A similar number of servants milled about, some sitting against walls, some armed with kitchen knives and looking around nervously. Near the center of the room a circular clearing had been made, and Eter stood in the center, obviously winded as his aura flickered like a flame around him, but seeming unharmed. By him was Elz, the only calm person in the room, even her aura remained steady around her, even though it was clear it had been seeing use given the various bodies around the room. Several had been slain by blade, several seeming knocked out by magical force, plenty scorched or with crumpled armor smelling of sulfur, and three men petrified to wood, screams of anguish on their face. Those last three were most certainly Elz.

Lori ran into and embraced Eter, only barely not tackling him to the ground. He returned the embrace, planting a hand on her back and holding her closely for a quiet moment before her nose reminded her why she normally wore a mask around him, and she backed off slightly, suppressing a gag. Elz was quick to come to her side with a woven strip of green, replacing her bandage with little fuss and skilled hands, better stopping the blood flow, and creating a slight tingling sensation on the wound, further dulling the pain. "Lori. I was worried... I... Thank you for being here. Eric has betrayed me, and the number of loyalists amongst those prepared for battle at the estate is worryingly low. The estate has a professional force of roughly seven hundred, the majority of course are in the surrounding countryside or patrolling the roads and forests. He gathered all that were loyal to him, and assaulted the manor a few minutes ago, a battle taking place here. I've gathered everyone I can, but can't find Gabriel." Eter explained quickly before pausing, taking several long breaths. Lori could see that her master's aura was much duller than normal, judging by the corpses littering the area, he had been pushed by the sudden fight, unable to properly manage his aura and expending it quickly.

"Where the fuck is he? Lori will fucking make him choke on his own sword." She asked hurriedly, mind racing in rage and doubt. Then she caught the sharp scent of fire essence, and shouted a warning to the men and women near a barricade to her right a moment before it was engulfed in a ball of brilliant flame, challenging Ember in its heat. All that remained after was the ashes of the barricade, some molten metal remains of dropped blades, and a briefly remaining visible cloud of heat. Luckily those close enough to be caught in the blast had gotten out of the way at Lori's shout. The large hallway held a column of fully armored warriors 3 wide and 8 long. Out of the ashes a few glass shards stuck out, a fucking dragonbreath phial. The traitorous soldiers were mostly men, though 3 women were among them, each carried a metal shield and a bastard sword, armored in half plate. Lori didn't recognize them, but Eter seemed to.

"Shit... He brought his high guard." The noble muttered as the soldiers began to advance. Elz tilted her head before seeming to smile, gesturing to give her a moment as she began to mold the wood around her into some kind of sigil sequence. Lori didn't know what a dryad needed help to cast, but she was very glad she wasn't on the receiving end of whatever it was, moving towards the line of loyalists ready to meet the approaching traitors.

As the two sides met, it was a slaughter, the shortswords of most of the loyalists bounced harmlessly off steel shield or plate, a breach in the defensive line was almost instantly made as a loyalist stumbled and tripped from a shield slam strong enough to bring a solid crunch as it met his chest. The slick sound of blade piercing gambeson and flesh filled Lori's ears, the metallic scent of blood and fear rose around her, but the loyalists held for now, even as the better trained and equipped side slowly pierced the line, and soon Lori came face to face with one. She caught a forward thrust, shifting it to her side and wincing as she realized it still met the flesh of an ally, she punched forwards, staggering the elite fighter as she disengaged, slipping away from the mass of struggling bodies. She wasn't able to fight in formation like that, all she could do was nervously wait, glancing back as Elz prepared her magick. She saw a red headed servant girl with a small crossbow trying to aim a shot, less scared than most of the other non warriors in the room. Just as the momentum of the assault began to fully break into the room, one of the armored soldiers cutting through a defender and stepping over into the open room, Elz began to raise her arms.

And then the fae's eyes went wide, and Lori covered her ears as an unnatural scream of pain escaped her lips, falling quickly to her knees and clutching at her chest which was oozing a black sappy liquid. Elz's powerful aura wavered, focused on her new wound, stopping the spread of further damage seemingly, taking all her might. She looked desperately towards Lori, agony written across her face as she could only mouth the word "tree."

Fuck. Lori looked back, the defenders were now totally falling, and even in the open, with how drained her and Eter's aura was, she didn't like their odds of taking on all the elite warriors. And now Elz was entirely incapcitated. She unsheathed her claws regardless, ready to hold the line as long as she could, when she heard a crashing sound coming from the hall behind the assault. A massive hulking figure clad in heavy armor lumbered down, glaring at the traitorous forces. At first Lori thought it was an orc, before realizing the smell didn't fit, and it had to be Ale.

Several of the high guard turned to face the large man who was wielding what looked like some kind of war axe. Just before they met, Lori's ears perked as the shuffle of feet and hands reached her. A slightly shrill voice called out "Fire!" as parts of the hallway and room opened that were previously hidden, Lori only knowing some of the secret passages that were revealed as servants armed with crossbows fired at the distracted traitor forces, Lori's eyes catching the pointing finger of Gabriel as he fired his own hand crossbow to land a bolt with a solid thud between the eyes of one of the warriors. After the volley ended, many of the elite warriors were wounded, only a handful still standing, and even further confused, one of them lost their head to a heavy swing from Ale's axe. Lori didn't hesitate, lunging at one of the few other remaining enemies as her claws slid between a gap in their armor, piercing deep into their flesh and leaving them on the ground afterwards. Another straggler met their end from an arcane force crushing them inside their armor from Eter. And the remaining few didn't last long, Lori noticing the redhead girl bringing one down with a well placed crossbow shot of her own.

After it was over, she saw celebration from the remaining defenders, those still able to walk dragging away the injured but not dead from the scattered ashes that marked the sight of the small battle. Gabriel was celebrating his plan working, congratulating and thanking Ale, explaining the ambush he had prepared to Eter. Lori couldn't focus on any of that, a shiver went down her spine as she felt a subtle ping of circle magic coming from the garden, coming from Maddie. She knew then where Eric was. "Lori has to end this." She murmured a simple explanation, going to help her druidess, and ideally her fae companion, whose tree had been hurt somehow. She didn't feel her feet leave the ground as she ran, didn't feel the mostly healed wound on her side tear itself back open, she was too focused on running. And soon she arrived at Maddie's little shack, and her blood boiled as she saw what she did.

A large stallion sat near it, and Maddie was slumped against one of the fences of the garden, blood trickling down from her nose and ears. She had tried using circle magic to defend herself, the smell of lilac and lavender coating the place was proof. But Eric stood, sneering down at her, the glistening red of blood on his drawn blade as he looked back at Lori. His eyes were a furious crimson, gazing into her own with an almost mocking gesture. "The cat came around. Didn't know you were that eager to die." He grumbled as he turned to face her, wielding his blade with both hands and taking the stance of an expert swordsman. She could barely make out the scent of cold iron underneath the lavender and copper stench of Maddie's blood. She didn't bother speaking, only growling before prowling forwards.

Normally she'd charge or lunge, but not against someone with a cold iron sword. She had to be careful. Her fae heritage made her vulnerable to the metal, like a vampire exposed to sunlight, it would burn away her skin, stop her normal quickened natural healing, and even rend away her aura and very life force. Not to mention that her claws, normally strong as adamantine and sharp enough to cut through poorly made steel, would be about as resilient to the blade as warm butter. If it even grazed her, it could end up a mortal wound, even if it just came close enough to her, it would start to wear away her aura and maybe singe her skin. Her fur bristled as she approached and felt the presence of the wicked metal. Eric was tall and imposing, not a giant of a man like Ale, but still a good two heads above Lori, well built with skin tanned in the sun of battlefields and patrols. He didn't wear his normal uniform that he wandered the estate in, a chainmail vest with only a single breastplate providing protection potent enough to ward off her claws. He wore half plate, a set of mithril chainmail underneath and a black fabric below that, a visorless helmet covered his head, and well made gauntlets protected his hands. Only a few points on his arms weren't covered with overlapping steel plates, his neck also only protected by the chain and fabric.

He stepped forward, swinging his blade along a cross diagonal towards Lori's shoulder, knowing she couldn't parry or block. Lori rolled onto her shoulder towards his side, feeling the minor sting of the blade passing near her body, her aura once more flickering. She got to her feet, but he was in a solid defensive position by the time she did, once more stepping forward as he now shifted to a different guard, slashing forwards as he did. She resisted the urge to try using magic to parry, knowing that the blade would simply cut through anything she had the energy to muster up currently. She instead stepped back, arching her body to cause the swing to barely miss grazing her chest as he began another attack almost before she even regained her footing.

She continued to backpedal, narrowly avoiding each well balanced and expertly placed strike launched by Eric. She could do almost nothing to disrupt him, even brushing against his blade would be suicidal, and he easily held the advantage of reach over her. She was kept barely on her feet, only her superior reflexes and balance keeping her alive as he continued to advance. Both of them were silent, besides for the grunts of effort and exertion, they were both focused on the fight, trying to do everything in their power to come out on top, to kill and to survive. Eric's motions were fluid and he didn't over extend his strength, he knew he only needed a light scratch, and was doing an annoyingly good job at preserving his stamina. Lori kept stepping back, only barely able to retain her balance as she dodged blow after blow, feeling the stinging of her skin as the fight went on, the cold iron doing its work even without touching her. She needed to do something soon, if she stayed purely on the defensive, she'd end up dying, and the bastard would be able to do whatever he wanted to Maddie.