Solo A Death in the Family

[Crypt]

OOCNo problemo! I'll leave one bandit in Markus' fight to run away in order to allow Crypt to find out the location of their lair. Raising his longsword, Crypt charged into the middle of Markus' fight, slamming the flat of his sword right into a bandit's face, which caused him to be momentarily stunned. Markus took advantage of the brief lull in combat, swinging his own blade and hitting the masked man's abdominal area, creating a large gash there. The bandit stumbled backwards, shocked by the sudden turn of events. Markus followed up with another wild swing, narrowly missing his right arm. Crypt hastily dodged the incoming scimitar of the other enemy, then side-stepped another wild swing by the bandit almost perfectly; only a small cut was made on his left cheek. Wiping away the small drops of blood that were already appearing on his skin, Crypt crouched slightly, then leapt towards his opponent. Grasping the hand in which his foe held his scimitar at, Crypt prevented him from using his own weapon. At the same time, Crypt attempted to drive his longsword through the bandit's body, but his aim was slightly off-target and only made a moderate cut on the waist of his opponent. Still, a wound was a wound, and it was distracting enough. Now grappling with the bandit, Crypt struggled to overpower the man (not an easy task, especially with his own injury). He had ceased the usage of the Flux after downing Leona's opponents, knowing that prolonged usage would hamper him in future combat. "Just die, you son of a petching whore!"

[Accolade]

Markus dashed forward continuing the fight against the wounded bandit. The man was stumbling and the squire was sure to put all of his weight behind him as he slammed the shield against his opponent which knocked him off his feet. Not a tick later did Markus descend, stabbing his sword into the belly of the downed man and turning it crooked into his gut. A low gurgled sound slipped out as the bandit's mouth filled with his own blood. Markus grinned almost viciously while forcing the blade in deeper, before finally pulling it out and allowing the man to die.

The bandit facing Crypt wasn't having any better luck, the drykus seemed to match him blow for blow, and their speed only worked to disarm the other without either of them gaining a foot. In the short distance Leona hobbled forward. The sting in her side was getting her worse and started to course up her back and down one of her legs. She was tired and needed to rest, but she knew that she had to continue, if only to repay the man who saved her life. With the bandit he struggled against to her side, the girl raised her sword and dashed towards him, hoping to take him by surprise.

The bandit grunted, even kicking at Crypt's legs as he tried to over power him. Suddenly, he turned away, his eyes catching the glint of light from Leona's blade. The bandit quickly head butted Crypt and pushed away from him just as the blade slashed between them. Leona stumbled forward, losing her balance after her wild swing, and fell backwards against Crypt. The bandit doubled back then paused. He cast his gaze out, seeing that all of his companions were down save for the one facing off with the other squire. He glared towards Crypt, who was holding the injured Leona, then to Markus who had just finished off another bandit and was running towards him.

Fear struck into the man's heart, causing him to turn away and flee. He ran hard in the opposite direction, going past Oreion who faced off against the last bandit. Markus stopped to Crypt's side to check on his friend and to see who the mysterious fighter was. But there wasn't time to chat, and after making sure that Leona was ok, he raced off to help Oreion. The squire was in over his head in this fight. Although he was clearly more skilled in fighting than the other too, but still his opponent wasn't a lowly bandit. He was an ex-mercenary known only as Sid.

Sid was taller than the squires and even the drykus. His muscle mass was slim, but he was fit and could move easily in the armor that he wore. The long sword that he used was of normal quality but he wielded it easily enough. Oreion had been reduced to defense, only being about to block the onslaught by the rough bandit who man-handled him easily even with his shield up. The bandit hammered away at the squire, forcing him down on his knee's while holding the shield over his head. A viscous cackle erupted from him as he dug in his kneel and swiftly brought his boot under the boy's chin. Oreion's arms flung open as his body fell backward onto the ground, putting him down for the count.

Leona glanced up towards Crypt, her eyes widen, and the fear and pain she felt showed in her features. "Please....help him." she whispered while holding her side and wincing. Markus had crossed the distance by this time and was swinging wildly against the larger bandit. The man smiled, taunting him as he began to attack him into a defensive position just as he had done with Oreion.

"You kids call yourself squires? HA! You're not even.." his voice trailed off as he looked around and saw that all of his companions had been bested, and that he alone stood in the battle. He growled, gnashing his teeth as he stared hard at the group. "You will all pay for this!" With a quick and sudden move, he launched a viscous attack against Markus causing the boy to fall backwards and lose his shield. The bandit stepped forward, a raging glare in his eyes as he swung his blade downward towards the squire.

OOCOkay even I have to admit...that was a good setup. Have fun saving the day.

[Crypt]

OOCThank you for the compliment! Hold on, what set up? "Kids? I am no kid, you insolent fool. I am Crypt, and today I shall be your doom." Crypt shouted at Sid once he had heard the rather insulting remark made by the bandit.Looking rather impressive (in his own thoughts, naturally), standing on top of a small molehill, placing his longsword in front of him, the tip in the ground. It was enough to distract Sid and allow Oreion some time to recover. Unfortunately, the image was ruined utterly once he lost his balance due to a particularly nasty twinge. Whirling his arms comically, Crypt fell towards Sid. The bandit was preoccupied with attempting to slice Markus up, having only glanced in Crypt's direction when the Drykas had shouted. As such, he only had time to make a wild swing of his sword at Crypt before Crypt fell face-first onto a very surprised Sid. Every squire looking at Crypt had the urge to kill the idiot very, very slowly. The incredulous expression on Leona's face was rather hilarious. ... Gods, how the petch did that idiot even save me? Sid recovered quickly, and leapt backwards to prevent any incoming attack from the fallen Crypt. As Crypt brushed away the mud from his face, Sid slammed the flat of his blade right into Crypt, but was forced to back away before he could press his advantage by an enraged Oreion, who struck a direct blow at the bandit's chest. Though the armor protected him, he stumbled backwards due to the sheer force of the blow. Oreion panted, dropping his sword as he knelt on one knee, attempting to regain his breath. Crypt stood up again, his visage twisted into something unrecognisable. Snarling at the bandit, he commenced a series of blows that Sid blocked with ease. Faking to the left, Crypt dashed to Sid's right side in an attempt to flank him. Even as the bandit deflected his longsword, Crypt crouched underneath the blade and gave him a kick to his left ankle, causing the bandit to fall on his posterior.

[Accolade]

Leona rushed to Markus' side as fast as she could. Her wound was still giving her pain but she knew that her friends needed her. There was also her pride, the half Inartan squire couldn't stand the thought of being helpless and would fight to her last breath to prove her worth. She hobbled along keeping an eye on the fight only paces ahead before she found him, and crumbled at his side.

"Markus! Wake up!" she called out slapping the unconscious man across his face. The squire awoke then, taking several chimes to remember where he was. "Leona..." he paused then as he sat up and stared across the ground at the battle that had continued on after he fell. "I thought I was done for.." he said softly, glancing back towards her.

She grabbed his shoulders, her fingers curling around his collar as she shook him hard. "Snap out of it! You're needed!" Leona's words rung true inside his mind, and after nodding to her, he pushed himself off the ground and sluggishly jogged over towards the men with his sword in hand. Oreion had regained his breath and was now standing side by side with Crypt. The three men glanced at the other, and moved to stand paces away with the last standing bandit between them.

He snarled at them, his features turning a dark red from behind his mask. He was truly alone now, and for the first time out numbered and on the losing end. Though he was far from finished. A subtle cackle slipped from his lips as he reached up and snatched his mask off and tossed it aside. The group was met with a uniquely gross sight. The bandit's head was bald, scars to either side of his jaws and to the back of his head. Strange tattoos covered his face and well as his body which was still covered by armor.

He grinned, blacken teeth now shown clearly now that the mask had been removed. "Oooh, now isn't this a treat. You boys think you have done something huh? You take out a few no bodies and suddenly you're heroes? Not gonna happen, you still have me to deal with." A smirk dawned his dried lips as he reached behind his shoulder and pulled out a second long sword. The bandit moved against them, first striking at Crypt who was able to block the sword attack but fell victim to the bandit's elbow that crashed into his jaw afterwards. With a wicked swing, he brought his right blade in a curved arch towards the drykus' ribs.

OOCNo no, I was referring to how I set you up to save the day.

[Crypt]

OOCI don't really know what exactly did I do to set him up, but thanks anyway! “I've faced a god-forsaken giant sea serpent. I've fought with herds of glassbeaks with only one other person, I've fought a dire wolf and a Talderan tiger,” Crypt growled, his eyes alit with rage, “You? You are nothing compared to my past foes, and you will be another notch on my belt once we're done with you.” The bandit's elbow to his jaw interrupted his words, as did the blocked slash with one of his swords, catching Crypt off guard, but it also saved Crypt from a fearsome blow. As the Drykas stumbled backwards, the second longsword swept through nothing but air. Oreion attempted to deal a blow to the ex-mercenary's side with an accurately-swung slash, but Sid deflected it with almost unnatural ease. Crypt recovered, and both men commenced their attack on Sid. The relentless assault forced Sid to back away; skilled as he was in dual-wielding the longsword, he was unable to go on the offensive against the Squire and the Stranger, who used both hands and hence swung their blades with much greater force than Sid could muster. Pressing their advantage as best as they could, Sid was being slowly but surely worn down. He would not be able to keep up with their attacks after a few more minutes. Knowing this, the bandit took advantage of an opening in Oreion's stance, driving his two blades mercilessly into the squire's armored midsection. Even as he did so, Crypt, intent on finishing him off as fast as possible, assuming that either Leona or Markus would tend to Oreion, landed a blow directly on Sid's left eye with his right fist, then trapped both blades under his own longsword - one with the curved hilt, another by applying as much pressure as he could. And now the tables had turned. Sid, turning pale as he realised his predicament, released the two swords in his grasp and grappled with Crypt. The Drykas, with his right hand still located in close proximity to one of the bandit's eyes, simply stuck out a thumb and pushed it into his opponent's eyesocket even as Sid threw himself at Crypt.

[Accolade]

"Oreion!" Leona cried out, horror showing in her features after she witnessed the viscous attack from the bandit. But her words didn't reach him as he crumbled to the ground. He had tried to defend himself, turning his body away from the blades but he hadn't been fast enough. The blades slammed into him, piercing his armor and slightly digging into his flesh. It wasn't a fatal wound, but to the young squire, it felt as if he were going to die. He toppled over, his arms wrapped around his body as he winced in pain.

"No!!" Leona cried again as she forced herself up and on her feet. The injured girl jogged to her friends side and dropped down beside him to check his wounds. "He got me good.." the boy said, his voice trailing along with his thoughts. "Lie still, just relax and stay with me." Leona urged her fallen friend, wrapping her arms around him. Markus turned away from the battle, and leaving Crypt to fight alone as he hurried to his companions. He didn't know hoe badly Oreion was wounded, but he knew that he could no longer fight. Leona was also injured and could barley stand on her own. He found it up to himself to stand guard over them, to protect them should the bandit make it past Crypt.

There was a look of uncertainty in his eyes, and a look that Leona noticed. None of the three were Knights as of yet but out of them, Oreion had been the strongest. But now with him down, and Leona as well, everything fell upon Markus' shoulders to protect them. He squeezed the handle of his longsword and watched the battle continue on without him. He didn't feel right in leaving Crypt to fight alone, but he couldn't pull himself away from the two who needed him most.

The howl of the bandit caught them all by surprise, and even Oreion struggled to sit up and look on, all fearing that it was the stranger who cried out and that their time was next. The bandit doubled back, covering his face and hissing from the pain. Deep crimson rushed, and poured over his fingers. He was blind and forced into a state of pain worse than he could imagine. Crypt saw his opportunity and rushed in to finish him off, however the bandit still wasn't through. He quickly reach into a small stealth on the back of his belt and drew forth a long dagger. He hissed again, a growl slipping out as he swung wildly at Crypt.

[Crypt]

The long dagger slashed cleanly through the fabric of Crypt's shirt, leaving a thin red line on the Drykas' left side. The wound was minor enough, but it would hamper his movements due to the sheer pain it provided - about as painful as a papercut. Gritting his teeth, Crypt made a fist with his left hand and slammed it down on the bandit's hand which held the dagger, forcing Sid to drop it. With his still-bloodied hand, Crypt seized hold of the ex-mercenary's neck, holding it in an iron grip even as he forced Sid downwards onto the ground. A hiss escaping from between his clenched teeth, Crypt raised a foot and brought it down on both of Sid's knees, feeling faintly the crushed cartilage and tissue beneath his foot, cutting off all hopes of escape for the now unarmed bandit. "You've caused me a lot of grief, bandit..." Crypt paused for a moment as an involuntary goan escaped from his mouth, "But it ends here now. You've been a worthy opponent, but here it ends. Goodbye." Picking up his longsword, Crypt heaved it with both hands, raising it to slightly above his head, before planting it firmly, sharp end first, into Sid's head. The bandit flailed for a few seconds before finally going limp. Feeling as if a large burden had been lifted from his shoulders, Crypt sank to one knee, leaning onto his upright sword to support him. Panting rapidly, Crypt continued to stare at the corpse of the bandit. Once Crypt realised that his wounds were not non-existent, and once he felt the pain emanating from his injuries, Crypt began to push himself to his feet, using his longsword as a crutch. As he attempted to walk over to his backpack, he stumbled over quite a few times and only managed an unsteady, jerky shamble. Rummaging through his basic medical supplies, Crypt removed the blood-stained bandage on his arm and proceeded to open a vial of wound-cleansing potion, carefully portioning it out such that he would be able to clean all of his wounds. Throwing the empty vial away, he proceeded to daub the surface of his wounds with some healing ointment from a small jar, all the while attempting not to make any sound. He failed miserably, twitching every time his ointment-covered fingers touched a wound, even yelping occasionally. Crypt hated pain with a fervour, and he was starting to regret helping the squires. Finally finishing the rudimentary treatment, Crypt bandaged his arm again, noting that (with some relief) that most of the bleeding had stopped, and a dull ache had taken the place of the sharp, piercing pain. The Drykas spotted Maras obediently making his way over to Crypt. Crypt glanced to one side to check on the squires.

[Accolade]

And it was over, the bandits had been taken out and the group was safe. The squires had all watched in silence, but cheering for the stranger in their minds and in their hearts. They were all grateful for his help, and it was by Sylir's blessing that they were all still alive. Markus was especially grateful, and glad that he didn't have to fight the bandit alone. The squire knew that he wasn't ready to face such a foe, and he certainly wasn't ready to die.

Leona still held Oreion in her lap, and keeping a close eye on her friend. He twitched about some, and wincing from the pain in his body. What frightened Leona was the times in which he stopped moving and settled into silence, prompting the girl to shake him violently to be sure that he was still alive. They all watched Crypt now as he stumbled away to find his pack.

Markus glanced back to Leona, and moved back to Oreion's side to check on the squire. Oreion looked up at his friend, worry etched out into his features. "W-What happened, did you get him?"

Markus smiled, relief and happiness clearly showing in his features. "Yes, we got them, all of them...except the one that ran away but we got them!"

Leona smiled, a soft giggle slipping out as she gently moved her fingers through Oreion's hair. She looked to him, then to Markus, and finally in the direction of Crypt. "Is he going to be alright?" she asked Markus, who glanced back and around to her, unsure of what to say.

"Let me take him." Markus replied, and reached down to try and lift Oreion from the ground. Leona helped as much as she could, trying to lower the amount of pain the squire felt when his body was being moved. Oreion grunted and hissed and had to hold on tightly to them both in order to stand up. The three hobbled over to where Crypt sat, just as he finished up.

"That was a right brave thing you did there. You have our thanks stranger." Markus said and nodded in Crypt's direction. "I'm Markus, this is Oreion, and Leona." Oreion nodded, still wincing from the pain. "Hey..you wouldn't have any medical supplies would you kind sir?"

"No.." Leona interrupted. "You are badly hurt, we need to get you back to the city quickly. Thank you again sir for helping us. Do you need help getting back to the city?"

[Crypt]

"No problem," Crypt muttered, still preoccupied with the fading pain, "My name... is Crypt, and that lazy bum of a steed there is Maras. I had an obligation to help you, being human and all that, but it seems that I might regret it. These injuries hurt. A lot. I have only the most basic of supplies, Markus. Leona is correct in saying that Oreion needs to get back to Syliras. Fast." Crypt carefully looked over Oreion's wounds, motioning for one of the squires to remove his armor. Frowning slightly, he turned to Leona. "Remove his armor. Let someone else carry it while you take him to Syliras. You'll get there faster without having to bear the weight of that armor. I'll be tracking down the bandit that ran away, then I'll get back to Syliras at night. Send reinforcements tomorrow. It's too late today to mobilise any troops and send them here. This isn't the last of the bandits. To be able to recruit such a skilled man, they much have at least a small force of men. Tell the Syliran Knights to watch out for smoke. That'll be my signal, and it'll tell them the location of their lair. If they ask for my identity, tell them that I'm the storyteller that tells a different story every night at the Rearing Stallion." I'll have to get some armor if I don't want to be hurt this bad again. Leather armor. If only I'd brought my shield... Getting up from the leaf-covered ground with a partially-stifled groan, Crypt moved over to the corpse of the dead ex-mercenary, this time walking more fluidly, though more stiffly. Wiping his longsword on the grass to clean the blood off it, Crypt looked to the dead bandit as he rose from his crouched position. He raised his sword in a rough salute, acknowledging the skill and strength of the dead man before sheathing it. Picking up the two longswords that were wielded against him in the recent past, Crypt replaced them in the sheaths, taken as trophies of his victory. Searching Sid's clothes for anything of interest or of value, he found nothing but the hidden sheath used to contain the dagger Sid had used as a last-ditch attempt. Sheathing the dagger, he placed it in his backpack, before slinging it onto his shoulder. "I'll see you later, or perhaps tomorrow. Go now. Oreion's wounds will be infected if you don't get him to a healer in Syliras." The Drykas faced the direction he had remembered that the cowardly bandit had ran towards. Lowering his head to take in more information about the surroundings, he suppressed a smirk as he traced the beginnings of a trail. "That fool," Crypt murmured, "he's gone across that little stream there. I can see a few footprints in the mud, all heading that way, and though the ground is harder further on, there's wet spots on the ground for a long way. He must have fallen into the stream. Good job, coward. Not stopping to hide your tracks will be the death of you. Aye, that's certainly true." Crypt fought the urge to cackle maniacally, knowing that the squires were still in hearing distance.

[Accolade]

The squire hesitantly did as Crypt asked and sat the wounded Oreion on the ground. He hissed, grunting in pain as he was forced to lift his arms and allow them to remove the armor from his body. "Easy guys..easy." Once he was seated, the squires all listened while Crypt spoke and told them his plan. Leona stared in shock as he revealed that he planned to go after the bandits alone.

"What..you're going alone? That's madness, how can you do so sure you can handle them all alone?" She was concerned for the man, and he himself had also taken a beating in the battle they all had just survived. " You should come back to the city with us. Let our healers fix you up. and then..if you still wanted to face the bandits, then you could come back with the Knights. We'll even come back with you."

"No..I won't" Markus interrupted looking away from them and back to the field where bodies still laid fresh.

"What?" Leona asked, quickly looking from Crypt and too her companions.
"I won't be coming back here for a while, Oreion's too hurt and you shouldn't come back either."

Leona fell into silence then, thinking over her near death experience and how lucky she was that Crypt had been there to save her. She realized that it was best not to return just yet and perhaps once they had time to train and better themselves then they could try their hand at battle. She nodded and they all listened as Crypt finished explaining his plans. Leona confirmed the plan with her brothers and they all agreed with Crypt.

"Alright, we'll head back then, and tell our patrons what you said, and how you helped us today." She smiled to him and watched as he stood and moved to collect the belongings from the bandit. "Alright, let's get a move on then.." Markus said and nodded to Leona to help him to stand Oreion back to his feet. The squire grunted again as they pulled him up and winced as he features twisted.

Turning with the wounded man leaning against her shoulder, Leona glanced a last time towards the man that had saved them all. " Will we see you...at the Rearing Stallion. I mean?" the girl asked hopeful of a reunion with the drykus. Once they said their good byes, the squires slowly headed back towards the city and Crypt rode Maras in the opposite direction. The drykus followed the mud tracks for as long as they lead on. The trail faded along the way as the bandit's boots dried but it was a good start for Crypt to move on. He continued on for another bell, the day turning to night just as he stumbled upon a cave mostly hidden by the forest.

Crypt slipped off Maras and hid himself behind a thick tree and glanced around the area. He could see one bandit standing guard on the outside of the cave, and a mid-sided wagon stationed near him. The wagon was broken down with only two of the wheels still attached and carrying nothing. He could only assume that whatever they were carrying had been taken inside. He could likely take the bandit standing guard, but what he didn't know what that there were two bandits near the entrance of the cave showing a test of strength in arm wrestling and further back in a different area, where an old stone alter sat, was the leader of the group along with two other men. Crypt would have to be careful, he was alone now and without anyone to watch his back.

OOCOkay, all the bandits here are armed with the same armor and weapons as the others.