The crackle of thunder boomed around the area as the flash dissipated, revealing the pair of the strangers as they surrounded Entalia and Adam. Both were taller than Adam by several heads, towering over even the dragon as she kept herself slinking against the half-elf.

The larger man was donned within plate mail, though the mail seemed to be made of the liquid silver of ancient mines, and the blacks of old magic. It blanketed around his entire form, not a single seam or chink within its protection, and even his helmet covered his entire face, appearing as a blank mask. A cloak fell down his back, a cloak of silver and black, just like his armour, though not quite the same. It was a new silver, a new black, one that had been made by man, not by something beyond a mortal.

The figure stood tall and wide, and yet his movements fluid like water. Sometimes he’d jerk, as though the river’s flow was stopping randomly. He held no obvious weapons, though even Adam could feel the danger emanating from him, a danger which was obvious, that of might and brawn. Then there was the other.

The thinner being was tall and lean, not quite as tall as the brawnier being in black and silver. He was adorned in pure silver, as though he had taken a dip inside liquid silver and then stood tall. His armour was plate mail as well, though it melted together and moved with every tiny breath, his helmet also a mask. His movement was almost as still as ice, and if it wasn’t for the slight shimmering of his armour to every breath, Adam would have thought the being was a statue. A similar cloak of new silver and a new black covered his shoulders.

“Souls for our father, brother,” the larger figure said.

“Souls for our father,” the leaner being replied.

“I don’t like the sound of that, gentlemen,” Adam said. “We have some business to attend to.”

“Business?” the leaner being asked, cocking his head to the side slowly. “What business do you have, half-fey?”

“We’ve got some giants to kill.”

“Some giants? Our giants? Our prey?” the taller being asked. “Our prey, you want to steal them?”

“Not steal,” Adam replied. “They’re currently providing some discomfort for some villagers, and I have been asked to assist them.”

“Deny them your help,” the leaner being said. “These giants are our prey. I won’t allow you to steal them from us, for our father hungers still.”

“I’m very sorry, but I’ve already been paid.”

“What payment is worth your life?”

“A good night’s sleep.”

“Sleep?”

“I am still half a man.”

A moment of silence passed through the ruins, encompassing the four. None of them moved, each of them holding in a breath. The silver of the leaner figure moved an inch.

Attack

D20 + 8 = 22 (14)

Adam’s body moved quickly as he caught the blade with a javelin, the blade a hair’s breadth away from Entalia’s neck. Entalia had also whipped her tail around the arm of the wider figure, who had aimed to cleave Adam in half with his great axe.

“How very rude,” Adam said, his muscles straining against the being’s blade. “You haven’t even introduced yourself. Did your father not teach you any manners?”

The lean figure looked towards Adam through his masked helm. “Laurient,” he said, and then he became a blur.

Battle Order

D20 - 1 = 8 (9)

Health: 230 -> 203

Mana: 34 -> 31

Spell: Fireball

8D6 (1, 2, 2, 4, 4, 4, 5, 6)

28 fire damage!

Onward Soar

1 -> 0

Mana: 31 -> 28

Spell: Fireball

8D6 (1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 5, 6, 6)

29 fire damage!

Adam brought up his javelin, striking the blade of liquid silver within Laurient’s grasp. His arms burned with effort as he deflected the sword, again meeting the blade with his javelin, though this time receiving a significant dent. ‘Oh no,’ Adam thought in that instant. Laurient brought his blade up again, Adam's javelin shattering within his grasp as the silver blade struck against him.

“Haaargh!” Adam exclaimed in pain as lightning coursed through his body, the heat striking from his chest to his heel as the blade struck him. Right behind him he could hear Entalia in her own struggle with the beefier figure. He couldn’t just summon a pair of Fireballs from the heavens, he’d hit her. Yet he pulled away from the silver blade as Laurient wound up for another blow.

“You need to chill out,” Adam said, revealing his spinning die towards the silver being. Bandlor shot out, slamming into the figure’s mask and then bolting towards the sky as a single bead came from the heavens, followed by a second. Adam’s magic burned through his veins as he called for his tried and true ability of two Fireballs. This time only his enemy would feel the entire blow of it.

The flames expanded behind Laurient, covering him in flames. He shrieked out in utter terror as the flames encased his entire form, enough to cause Adam to stumble backwards. Adam brought up a hand to protect himself from the heat, and through his finger tips he could see the shifting silver liquid as it spun around Laurient’s body, revealing small cracks of the figure within.

Laurient’s skin was tan, but flaked with bark. His eyes were emerald, like those of Entalia’s in her elven form, but Laurient seemed far more in tune with nature. His eyes were dull with utter terror towards Adam, and a deep sense of guilt filled the half-elf. He had never seen someone with such terror, not even Alten had ever looked at him so. Then the silver covered him again, his cloak wrapped around the silver as he dropped to a knee, panting.

“Brother!” called a voice from behind, and Adam turned to watch as Entalia wrestled the other figure to the ground.

“Enough!” Bandlor exclaimed from the sky, the godly voice echoing louder than the thunder from earlier. “You damn brats! Just you wait until I’m back in my body, I’ll drag the roots out of you!”

Laurient looked up towards the sky to the talking bird. “You’re no familiar,” he said.

“Do I look like a bloody familiar!”

“Yes,” Adam replied.

“Shut it!” Bandlor flew down and landed down onto Adam’s head. “You two! Enough of this at once! If I need to, I’ll drag your father out and tear him branch from branch!”

“You stupid bird!” cried the figure wrestling Entalia. “Don’t speak of father so!”

“Oh? What the hell are you going to do about it!” Bandlor fluttered down and pecked the struggling figure’s helmet before flying back up to Adam. “I am the mighty Bandlor, and I will you to stop!”

Adam looked up towards the owl. Just what was he planning, revealing himself in such a way? He had been so careful keeping him a secret, only really letting it slip to those that had figured him out due to their abilities.

“Mighty Bandlor? An owl?” Laurient asked, standing tall now with his blade in hand.

“There have been some situations, but enough about that. Last I recall, I had spoken with your mother about the matters of your presence within the realms of man and mortals.”

Laurient froze, his breath caught. His silver did not move as Bandlor mentioned his mother. Even the other figure, wrestling with Entalia, fell still.

“Oh, suddenly quiet aren’t you?” Bandlor said.

“I see,” Entalia said. “No wonder the faefolk of old do not wander these realms…”

“You have broken the secret of the pact!” Laurient accused.

“Have I? Then who speaks so shamelessly in front of me?” Bandlor puffed his chest in such a manner, even Adam felt as though he should kneel. “I will speak with your mother about this matter once I have completed my task here, and then we shall see what she has to say about this!”

Entalia pulled away from the figure, withdrawing to Adam. Adam remained still, not wanting to ruin Bandlor’s stride, but keeping an eye on Laurient. He trusted Entalia to keep the other fellow in check.

“There has been movement of this land,” Laurient said. “Those of man who have something which belong to us. Their souls are forfeit!”

“Yet you have come to fight those within my company,” Bandlor said. “He who has sworn to fight for my daughter!”

“Your daughter?”

“This one is Arya’s champion,” Bandlor claimed.

“We have no qualms with the champion of your daughter,” Laurient said, looking down towards Adam, his voice dripped with the unceremonious tones of a petulant child caught in the act of a great transgression. “We are here to claim the souls of-”

“HUARGH!” Bandlor exclaimed, cutting Laurient off. The sound of his godly voice shattered across the area. Adam felt something cool atop his head and then a flash of light, a light that was all colours and no colours at once flashed through the area.

“You damn brat!” Bandlor leapt from Adam’s head and then slammed into Laurient. Laurient’s armour crumpled like paper where Bandlor struck and in the next moment he slammed back against the wall of the mountain so many metres away. The entire area shook as Bandlor looked back to Adam, with those eyes which swirled with all kinds of gems, filled with the wisdom and the rage of a god. Then the rage dissipated and he looked up, as though listening to someone else.

“There’s no time for this! Go!” Bandlor shouted, his eyes catching Entalia’s for a moment. Then, the next moment, he disappeared out of existence.

“Bandlor?” Adam called out. He blinked a few times and then looked around, trying to find his tiny owl companion. “Hey… Bandlor? Where…”

“He is gone,” Entalia said.

“Gone? What do you mean gone?”

“He resisted Mistress Fate’s will, and now he’s gone.”

“Entalia… what do you mean by gone?”

“He is gone. Anything more than that, I don’t know.”

Adam looked at her. “Why did he…” Adam looked back to where Bandlor was.

“We need to go.”

“We do,” Adam said, looking down at the broken javelin and then the cracks of the rock where Laurient had been smacked by Bandlor. “If you guys want to help us out with the giants, then-” The rock shuddered and then fell, crumbling on top of Laurient. Adam blinked at it as the other figure then rushed up towards the rock.

“Brother! No!” He tried to shoulder the rock up to allow Laurient free.

Adam turned from Entalia and then rushed up beside the stranger. “Push with your legs,” he said as he grabbed the other side of the rock and then tried to lift the rock.

Athletics

D20 + 8 = 13 (5)

‘Oh dear.’ Adam grunted as he tried to lift the rock. This wasn’t going to work.

“We must leave,” Entalia said.

“Give us a hand then,” Adam gasped. “Please.”

Entalia leapt over and then growled quietly. “They tried to kill us.”

“They didn’t, and Bandlor gave Laur-” Adam found it difficult to breathe as he spoke. “Help!” He gasped as he tried to push the rock again.

Athletics

D20 + 8 = 14 (6)

‘You have got to be kidding me!’

Adam dug his head into the rock and then tried to push it with as much of his body as he could. Entalia then pressed herself against the rock, and it shifted under the force of the three of them. The stranger lifted up more of the rocks and revealed Laurient. His armour was rippling wildly, like a maelstrom of silver where the rock had dug in to him.

“Brother!”

“Yes, yes! I’m awake, my dear Maurgrey!”

Maurgrey helped Laurient up and the pair looked to Adam and Entalia. “You should count yourself lucky,” Laurient said, “that the mighty Bandlor has saved you from our wrath.”

“Count yourself lucky I don’t spank you back to your mother,” Adam replied. “The appropriate response is thank you, actually.” Adam turned to Entalia. “I can see why Bandlor told these old faefolk to, if you would pardon my French, fuck off.”

“I pardon your fringe, but we should be going now.”

Adam turned to look back to the pair of faefolk in silver. “Are you going to keep crying, or are you going to be helping up with the mud giants?”

“They are our prey,” Laurient’s silver blade disappeared back into his armour.

“They can be whatever you want them to be, but I’m still slaying them in Arya’s name.” Adam could tell that Laurient was narrowing his eyes at him even through the silver mask. “You can either sit here on your bottom after Bandlor spanked you, or you can act your, presumably wisened, age and behave yourself.”

“You should watch your tongue!”

“Or what? You’ll cry back to your mother?” Adam stepped towards the pair. “You seem to have forgotten what Bandlor said. If you think he’s the only one who is interested in tearing you branch from branch, you best think again. I’m at the end of my rope with your stupidity, if you keep acting out, I’ll send you back to your father as ash.” Adam then turned on his heel, huffing as he climbed on top Entalia.

He had assumed the pair of them would have been slightly more amiable after their little talking to by Bandlor, but they behaved rather entitled. It was as though they believed themselves to be above others by virtue of who they were, as though the rules of the world should not apply to them. It was almost as if they agreed to a deal and then decided to renege when it best suited them. As a Brit, he understood how they could feel such a way, but it was rather embarrassing to see.

“Let’s go,” Adam said, grasping onto Entalia’s spiked neck. She leapt up into the air, the wind rushing through him, as they then flew off into the sky. Adam looked back to see the shifting silver of the pair following them, bounding with great haste after them. They didn’t seem to want another fight, and Adam sighed as he relaxed against Entalia.

“I’m very sorry you had to see that side of me,” Adam said.

“You sounded quite frustrated.”

“Yes, well… I am rather done with buffoonery for today.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means what it sounds like. If I have to deal with someone who has no respect or sense of decency, I might have to backhand them to their senses.”

“What of me? Am I someone with no respect of sense of decency?”

“Well, in some ways, perhaps?”

“Then will you backhand me?”

“Probably not. You’re still a friend of mine, I would like to think.”

“So you have different rules for your friends? That’s wonderful to hear.”

“That’s the way the world works, right?”

“I suppose it is.”

Adam looked down to watch the bounding masses of silver, the light catching their armour and scattering it all around. He hoped they wouldn’t cause trouble.