Eight Intertwined

51 - Orlick

The many guards lining the area came together in quick strikes, and Therion ducked beneath the blade of one of them. Orlick's defensiveness of the ruby dragonstone was making itself more than clear given just how many mercenaries were gathered in the area, and the room specifically felt so overwhelmingly crowded that it was nauseating. Therion didn't let that stop him though, and he decided to take advantage of the power that he had been given by Alephan by lashing out with a quick blast of ice magic. It was clumsy and a far cry from the fire magic he was used to utilizing if he was going to use magic at all, but he was at least able to force the guard that was lashing out at him specifically backward by a few feet. 

Ophilia reached for the Illumination Staff and raised it in the air before bringing it down hard on the man's head. He stumbled, and Tressa took advantage of that to force him backward with a swift blast of air. Two other guards were caught up in the strike, and they were pushed away from the heart of the battle as a result. Cyrus was the next to respond, flicking his wrist and creating a block of ice that was admittedly much more impressive than anything Therion could ever hope to muster. The ice was able to pin the men in place, and regardless of how much they struggled against the cold solid keeping them trapped, they were unable to escape. 

H'aanit could see the men were stuck, and she reached for her axe before raising it above her head and bringing down the hilt. The weapon struck one of the men in the temple and knocked him unconscious. Alfyn took care of the other two guards after pulling together a few ingredients from his satchel. Therion had to admit that he was impressed; he hadn't realized Alfyn was able to do something like that, though he could already tell it was going to come in handy. 

The nine other guards in the area were continuing to circle the group, and two of them surged forward before locking blades with Olberic. The warrior threw up his sword in a perfect position to block the two strikes, and while he was able to hold them off, the combined force of the two men was starting to wear on him much faster than they would have liked. Therion's eyes narrowed at the sight before he dashed in the direction of the men, mimicking something he had seen Primrose do so much as he struck with a quick blast of shadows that knocked them both off course. 

The pair of guards stumbled, and Cyrus once again pinned them to the wall. This time, a pile of boxes filled to the brim with supplies was knocked over along the way, leaving countless objects scattered throughout the floor. Tressa cleaned it up quickly afterward though, slashing her spear to manipulate the wind and force the items against the wall. It didn't seem like much at first, but at the very least, it would stop anyone from tripping and getting cornered as a result. 

Orlick finally seemed to have had enough of letting his guards fight for him, and he let out an angered screech at the sight of all his supplies being sent to the ground. He raised his dagger over his head and decided to attack the person who just so happened to be closest to him: Alfyn. He attempted to stab downward at Alfyn, but he was cut off when H'aanit of all people jumped in his way, one hand on her axe while the other stretched out to grab Orlick's arm. Since Orlick was a scholar and far from being as physically fit as the huntress, he was trapped on the spot, and that was all it took for Linde and Hägen to catch on to what H'aanit was trying to do. The two animals lunged directly at Orlick, and he was sent stumbling backward without mercy. 

Orlick's flailing ultimately left him just off to the side of the table where the dragonstone was, and he glanced down at the jewel with eyes that could only be described as hypnotized. He reached out to grab it, but before he had the chance, Ophilia flicked the Illumination Staff in his direction. A column of light exploded at his feet, and Orlick was forced away from the pedestal. The table wasn't at all rattled thanks to Ophilia's pinpoint accuracy, and the man roared in anger.