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Post by blackfox7 on Jan 18, 2009 13:12:51 GMT -5
As the three ducked behind a rocky mass of dripping cavestone, towards the direction of the eeri, repetitive voice, the mongoose's blade did its devastating work: Newts, rooks, jackdaws, voles and small snakes that charged forth had no time to stop or dodge before the rapidly whirling steel found them. Other things besides water now dripped in the battlenoise-filled cavern. After seeing at least a score of their comrades slain in a matter of moments, the next wave of attackers slowed and eventualy stopped before coming into range of the deadly fighter's weapon. Though the slimy salamanders hissed threateningly and the birds fluffed their neckfeathers in maniac pre-bloodspilling rituals, none seemed brave enough to step forward. Shardear, standing at the back of the horde near the entrance, was livid. "Nitbrains! Scum'earts! What the divvil are you standing around for?!? 'E's only one mongoose!" The pine marten raved, cuffing out randomly and hordebeasts' heads and swearing viciously,"You useless bunch of soppy mousebabes! Get in there and fight!!!" Fearing a death less quickly inflicted by their leader, rather than the swift end offered by Shatrunjay, some of the creatures began to slowly press forward as a mass of slithering bodies with eweapons pointing forward and ready.
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Jan 18, 2009 15:50:00 GMT -5
During the slight pause in advance, Shatrunjay has already grabbed his Chakrams and started backing up towards where the voice was, whenever they got within range, he would slash out at them, chopping off paws and heads whenever he could. Even with numbers stacked up against him, he still could hold them off on his own. Amazing how deadly a mongoose really is compared to even beasts like Badgers and Wolverines....
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Post by blackfox7 on Jan 18, 2009 16:44:44 GMT -5
Further down the winding tunnel, Nilansh struggled into the narrow, crack-like passage, willing himself to not drop the torch. Bhagavad and Yana pushed him forcefully, propelling him through and onto a patch of smooth flowstone that lay beyond the crack. Nilansh gazed up in awe; the light of the torch against the vastness of the chamber before him seemed only as a tiny star in the whole of the night sky. A luminous green lake took up most of the great space, slightly illuminating the chamber. All along the walls delicate white crystals were encrusted, threatening collapse at the slightest touch of the paw. The stoat brothers squeezed through the crack much easier than Nilansh had. They, too, were mesmerized by the otherwordliness of the high chamber. "Not far now, you must climb, climb!", the voice rang out again, echoed many times over in the gigantic space. The three vermin look around for the source of the voice until Bhagavad pointed up at a square-shaped passage in the wall high above them and across the lake. A dark figure huddled in the portal. "'Ey, d'ya tink 'e's de one who was tellin' us where to go?", Bhagavad whispered. Nilansh took a look back towards the crack before answering. "Well, I don't see noone else. Let's get up there an' see." ------------------------------------- Shard clenched her teeth so hard blood ran from her gums. The mongoose was getting away! She turned to a dozen of her vole bandits who were hanging back to guard her. "Open fire on that beast, an' I don't care how many of ours are hit!"
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Jan 19, 2009 0:20:37 GMT -5
Shatrunjay was about to make it out of sight through the crack until a storm of arrow flew at him. using his quick reflexes and the wide blade of his scimitar. He blocked the few that actually were aimed at him as others struck the stone walls, there was a slower arrow though that was aimed right at his face. Using his left arm with swiftness increased by adrenaline, he did something amazing. He made a grab for the arrow speeding at him, it slipped just a few CMs in his paw, but it managed to stop just before it reached his nose. He had managed to catch an arrow barepawed!
He quickly dropped the arrow and slid through the crack as quickly as possible. He ran as fast as he could towards the two stoats and the fox. "Hurry! Lets lose them quickly!"
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Post by blackfox7 on Jan 19, 2009 0:37:02 GMT -5
Nilansh, Bhagavad, and Yana galloped full speed ahead, splashing into the waters of the lake in a bid to reach the high passage quickly. They found that the faintly glowing water was only about a mouse's height deep at its center, and the going was much easier than they'd hoped for. The most challenging obstacle was the steep, craggy wall of rock they were required to climb. Nilansh took to it vigorously, digging the point of his broken javelin into the brittle, crusty limestone and heaving himself up an armlength at a time. Somehow he retained hold of the torch. Bhagavad and Yana were beginning their ascent less sure-footedly when the mongoose appeared from the crack. Shardear drew her curved dagger and flung herself through the throngs of unwilling creatures and fought madly to be at the front of the pursuing pack. The birds were getting in the way, as their splayed wings could not fit through the crack as they flapped about wildly. "Bunglers! Get out of-- AAGH! You Yellow-triped gutbag! Push me agin an' DIE! Rrrrraaagh!!", the pine marten fumed, unable to reach her quarry. The horde was in pandemonium,halfway unwilling to face Shatrunjay but fearful to face their berserk leader's wrath.
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Jan 19, 2009 1:00:22 GMT -5
Shatrunjay jumped and grabbed on to the wall, trying to find the best place to grip, when he did, he started to climb as well as carefully yet as fast as possible. If he had a pair of Tekagi-shukos this would be a lot easier, but he had to climb this wall, or be forced to fight his way through Shardear's horde to survive and he didn't really want to take his chances with that.
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Post by blackfox7 on Jan 19, 2009 1:14:25 GMT -5
Nilansh's paw had gripped the edge of the high passage. Pulling himself up, the fox noted the small dark figure hunched in the entranceway, staring at him impassively with beady, dark eyes. Something did not seem... right about the...thing. Was this creature some kind of mouse, only wearing a long, leathery garment? The fox shook it off, prefering to use his energy on helping Yana up and over the last ledge.
Shard had broken a jackdaw's wing and reached the crack in the wall. The unfortunate bird had not been quick enough to move out of the way. Now she coordinated the efforts of her vole bandits as they slid one-by-one though the tiny passage. The incredibly thin marten slipped through with no effort, squinting into the darkness and seeking the form of the mongoose. She spotted him halfway up the wall and turned to the voles behind her. "If you wormtailed lot ain't firin' shafts in two seconds I'll rip yer heads off. NOW!", she snarled. Shard raised her blade ominously, spurring the archers on like true spurs in a horse's flank.
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Jan 19, 2009 2:29:52 GMT -5
When Shatrunjay got over the last ledge, he turned and grab Bhagavad and pull him up. He had noticed the creature himself. It looked like a certain creature he had encountered in his younger life when he was a child, just before he was taken away from his jungle home long ago. Though that was in the night and you could barely see them most of the time. It's shape did look familiar....
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Post by blackfox7 on Jan 19, 2009 13:36:39 GMT -5
"FIRE!", Shardear roared, swinging her curved dagger maniacally. Ten shafts whirred upwards towards the high passage. Nilansh and Yana had no time to cry out in warning as the arrows sped straight for Shatrunjay and Bhagavad's unprotected backs.
A score of dark shapes suddenly swooped into view from all sides of the chamber. They flashed through the arrows' trajectory, and Shard was stunned to see the volley had disappeared. The winged shapes doubled back and half of them dropped the arrows they had snatched, the others loosing stones, over where the pine marten and her archers were standing. The voles scattered, three of them being cracked nastily by falling rocks and one being pierced through the paw by his own arrow. Shard dodged a stone narrowly and picked it up angrily, hurling it as hard as she could. The stone fell short and splashed into the lake. "RRRRRAAAAGH!!!", She shreiked, turning on her creatures who were finding their way through the crack, "Don't just stand there gawpin', you mudbrained slime!!! Climb that wall an' don't you dare be slow about it!"
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Jan 19, 2009 14:34:29 GMT -5
Shatrunjay had never seem this before in his life, it almost looked like a dark blanket was thrown over everyone. But these creature were helping him and attacking the enemies, which is all that mattered to him really. He jerked Bhagavad over the ledge to safety and then watched the battle between this amazing number of unknown creatures and Shardear's horde.
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Post by blackfox7 on Jan 19, 2009 14:52:17 GMT -5
Shardear darted and dodged as more and more of the flying... things... bombarded her horde with rocks. She watched in sullen silence as several of her newts that were climbing the wall were suddenly set upon by several of the creatures. These ones were carrying weighted ropes that made the salamanders lose their grip and plunge wailing into the painfully shallow lake. Desperate to exact her vengeance, the pine marten plunged forward to the wall, weaving around the turmoil the dark flying beasts were causing in her horde. She jumped onto the wall and immediately began climbing furiously, using her dagger as a climbing spike.
The three followers of Shatrunjay turned at the sound of scurrying. More of the strange winged mice were scuttling towards them from the interior of the high passage. They ignored the vermin, going right past them, and carried out an order said by the first of these creatures: "Close the door now, now." The beasts grabbed hold of stout ropes up against the walls and pulled. Unseen until now, a great slab of limestone, suspended by cables and pulleys, began to lower itself over the passage. A flurry of winged things sped one at a time through the closing door, never once touching Shatrunjay, Nilansh, or the stoat brothers. Just before the slab came to rest, Shard's snarling face appeared over the ledge. "AAAAAAARGGGH! @#$%! *&%! @#$!?%^$$#%^!!!!!" Yana winced and held his ears against the muffled curses.
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Jan 19, 2009 15:47:34 GMT -5
When Shatrunjay saw the slab finally came to rest, he dismissed it and started to walk away. For now hopefully they could get some peace, he knew she would be back if the creatures in this cave didn't kill her, but maybe this would allow him and his followers a much needed break from her. Besides, he still needed to train his followers and turn them from cowards to true warriors. He could not train them to be as fast as a mongoose or as strong as one, but he could make them much better warriors than their own species could ever hope to be. He turned to Nilansh.
"If i remember correctly. You had to break your own weapon to make a torch for us to see right?"
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Post by blackfox7 on Jan 19, 2009 16:03:01 GMT -5
Nilansh didn't respond for a moment, his eyes locked on the apparant leader of the winged beasts. "...Ah-er, ah, yessir, I did." The fox stuttered, looking down forlornly at his ruined javelin,"Erm, what about it?"
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Jan 19, 2009 16:08:10 GMT -5
Shatrunjay had not only grabbed his Chakrams during the pause in advance when he was holding them off, he had also grabbed a few daggers and knives, a bow and finally one arrow that he had managed to catch barepawed. During the climb he had simply shouldered the bow and put the daggers,knives and arrow in his sash. Now he was unshouldering the bow and taking the arrow and daggers and knives out of his sash. "Take these. If we have another encounter with her I'm going to need a ranged fighter. When we get outside I'll try to hunt some birds down for shaft feathers."
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Post by blackfox7 on Jan 19, 2009 16:19:12 GMT -5
The fox was slightly stunned by the "gift" as he took the bow in one paw and the arrow plus several knives in the other. The bow was a shoulder bow made of well-waxed yew, perfect for a light, quick draw. "Uhhh, thank you, sir." He mumbled. The leader of the winged beasts watched them unblinkingly, then stepped forward. "Welcome to Bat Mountpit, home of the Cayvear Tribe and a shortcut to the sea, the sea,"The creature said quietly. "You may stay as long as you need; the marten is a hated enemy to my tribe, my tribe." Yana and Bhagavad shared an excited glance. "Hoi, dey're bats, Yanny!" "E'en bedder, dey're lettin' us stay!"
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