Waiting at the top of the bore, Durg and Selene gave each other a sidelong glance before looking back over the lip.

“Why did we not think of any plan that was better than this?”

Durg shrugged and grinned as he crouched down, and sparked up four torches. Passing two to Selene, he righted himself.

“I dunna be comin' up with plans.” He had a rather inscrutable look on his face. “Sides, I be thinkin' this be a good plan. It be bold and aggressive. Only part I don’t like be the end, if things don’t work out.”

Selene 'humphed' at Durg, but before she could get a word out edgewise their signal sounded. Echoing up from the depths below, a feral growl reverberated off the stone. Durg gave a whoop hearing the noise and gleefully tossed his torches down. Selene was less enthused, but followed her friend's actions.

Rappelling down the rock face went fast. They both tracked Cire by sound as best they could while he descended. Neither had Darkvision and the torchlight did not reach them yet, the depth of the cavern preventing it. Metal clashing and screaming indicated that their friend had engaged their opponents. Hastening their slides down, each dropped into the pit as soundlessly as possible.

For once, Durg's clanging armor sounded like background noise. Looking around as she faded into Stealth, Selene noticed the swift movement of running to their side. Pulling her compact friend deeper into the darkness, she expertly avoided the fungal guardians and found a small clearing. These mushrooms gave off a faint purple glow in the dark, only noticeable as she got close. With her back guarded, her ability to assess the situation was greatly increased.

Taking her bow from her back deftly, she signaled Durg to look. Then she pointed over the cap of a half-grown mushroom. Forming up into a defensive position behind a pillar before them was the party of duergar. Every one of them was facing away from the pair. This was the best position they could have hoped for.

Bursting through one of the mushrooms in front of the duergar battle party, his forearms coated in blood down to his elbows. Wicked glints in those always seemingly unfamiliar eyes spoke to Cire having no reins on the monster before them.

Spreading from the top of Selene’s shoulders, a cold shiver slid down her spine to reside in a now-queasy stomach. Drawing an arrow and taking aim at the most vital opponent, the caster, she held position for the optimal moment.

Durg began to draw breath in more rapid cycles, preparing himself for battle. Taking the lives of his mortal enemies would bring a joy to his soul that very few things compared to in his world. Honor-bound to wipe these vile perversions from existence, a righteous sense of purpose took root inside of him.

Seeing Cire's terrible form, he felt kinship flare anew. Here was his brother. A true berserker if ever he had seen one. As soon as he saw the vampire engage the enemy, Durg started running.

Loosing her arrow into the duergar mage, during Durg's reckless charge, Selene tried to stay hidden. Another arrow flew before the first had even struck home. She aimed for vitals.

Falling in a crumpled heap, the spell caster was taken out of the fight. Selene would assure it. Continuing to nock and fire arrows at the fallen form, she emptied her quiver.

By the time Durg had closed half the distance, he was up to his top speed. Hatchets started to whirl before him as he used his arms to assist his jog. If he had been a human, or proportioned differently, the battle style would have been positively ridiculous.

Grace had never been a dwarven forte, at least with movement. When he met the bowmen, who were the closest standing duergar remaining, it was less of a duel and more of a stampede. He tore into the vile perversions with reckless abandon.

Durg smashed his spiked helm into the face of one Duergar. Next, he pivoted and threw himself onto the body of the other dark dwarf. His armor crushed the crossbow and bones alike. Durg wrapped his arms around the pinned opponent and ground his armor into the oath blighter’s body.

The duergar went limp in Durg’s grasp, but he wasn’t done. Cackling with mad laughter, he jumped and tackled the bowman into ground and then flailed around. Durg ground his spikes and ridges into flesh, bashing with his arms, legs, and head. By the time he was done, Durg’s foe was unrecognizable.

Grunting, Durg pulled himself back to his feet in time to see an arrow fly past him and sink into the last remaining bowman. He loved having Selene at his back. Durg searched the battlefield, only one Duergar remained standing, but there were still two monsters.

The duergar battle leader, wielding a wicked two-bladed heavy axe faced off against the vampire. Circling, snarling chomping fangs faced clanking metal. Heavy plate coated almost every part of the duergar battle leader’s decorated figure.

Selene fired a shot past Durg’s shoulder, it struck the duergar square in the back. In the instant Selene’s opening provided, the vampire was in the air. Leaping onto the body of the dark dwarf, the vampire clung in a bizarre hug. Lurching back, the blood crazed animal pounded its face into the duergar until the dwarf went limp. Then the vampire fed.

Whatever 'plan' the three of them had concocted before they had descended into this pit of battle and confusion was about to come to fruition. Selene had disliked this part intensely. She had known the idiot would suggest using an ability he had no practice with in an extremely risky situation.

She even had a pretty good idea that he was going to end up putting them in some sort of position just like this. However, simply because she could reason something out before it happened, did not mean that she was prepared to witness the results. Nor that she had any alternative.

Lack of empathy for killing would be putting what emotions were radiating over Cire's warped face as a severe understatement. By Artemis and Apollo! Her kindhearted friend was reveling in tearing these foes apart. Cire had not even seen a duergar before today. Whatever had become of him, she knew he had been right. They had to kill him. She may be able to make it to the rope and out in time, but there was no way that Durg would be able to. The quicker they acted, the better their chances would be.

Looking over to Durg, the two shared a profound silent conversation with their eyes. It was time to uphold their promise. Cire had been right. There was no way he would be able to live with himself if hurt either of them and they didn’t have any suitable options to restrain him.

Drawing her daggers she followed Durg, walking slowly over to their rapt friend. They kept their body language non-aggressive, in an attempt to not catch his attention. Cire was a revolting version of his previous self, covered in wounds, dripping with blood, and broken. Compassion welled inside of her, even moments after she had affirmed her resolve. Durg did not hesitate.

Throwing himself onto the vampire's back, the spikes of his armor held him fast. Bucking in a vain attempt to throw him off, the vampire writhed. The dwarf brought down his hatchet in a firm blow to his companions neck. Not an instant kill, but it incapacitated Cire. Another strong hammering blow severed his spinal cord completely.

On their first day bound to each other, the question of whether or not their bond passed beyond death would be tested. Both Durg and Selene felt a deep sense of melancholy as they glanced about the quiet room to affirm their safety. Battle high ebbing into exhaustion, the duo rested. Unusually quiet, the headless corpse of their ally kept them company in the silence.