The shriek in the night was all the warning they had.
The vrock, a lesser tanari'i, a lower demon from the abyss, swooped down at them from above. The humanoid vulture's powerful wings pulled back as it extended into a dive. Red rolled to the side avoiding the extended talons by mere inches, before sliding down the steep edge of the rocky hill to Lem's position, hidden in a cleft of rock.
Lem caught her around the waist before she could slide past pulling her to safety before she tumbled all the way down to the forest floor thirty feet below.
They stayed together, human and half-drow, his armed wrapped around her, their bodies pressed against each other in the dark. He could feel her heart beating against his chest. His own pulse pounded as they both strained to listen.
She pushed away silently, eyes glued to the opening, sword in hand. Even in the intensity of the moment, he found himself silently wishing she was still locked against his side, skin to skin. It was an irrational thought but it wouldn't go away.
Unaware of his internal struggle the half-drow ranger pulled her bow from her back slowly, silently knocking an arrow and pointing it towards the opening.
Lem's own trepidation growing he silently copied her movements, drawing his own bow and arrow.
The seconds he waited for the lesser demon to reappear were an eternity. He was unprepared for the creature's appearance as it extended its claws into the cleft. Red let an arrow fly and it pierced the wing of the hideous creature at the joint. The vrock let out a blood-curling shriek, stunning them both, its talons scraped inside as it clawed its way into the opening, screeching against the rock.
The talon hooked into Red's leg before she could stop it and she was yanked, yelping from the hole, her terrified gaze on Lem as she clawed desperately at the rock ground.
Lem dived forward intent on grabbing her hands but the vrock's momentum was too great. Both Red and the feathered hellspawn went over the edge rolling down the hill and vanishing below.
"Nooo!" Lem felt a rage he'd only known once before surge through him as he scrabbled forward dropping the bow. He was out of the hole and moving down the side of the rock surface faster than he thought possible. He could hear the shrieks below him, not sure which was Red and which was the vrock.
He could also see the blood trail. The sword was in his hand in an instant. There was no thought, no second to plan, a serene calm settled over him as Vengeance drew in the night air.
At last.
He landed in the clearing below.
"Luminos!" He shouted and a ball of light lit up the clearing as he slid down the last few feet. He could see the vrock dragging Red around, whilst Red clung to the dagger she'd put into its gut chanting out loud what Lem recognized as her levitation spell. Claw marks marred her body and blood poured freely from both combatants.
He stepped into the fray, as the vrock shook Red's grip off of her dagger and dropped her onto the ground pushing another claw into her leg. Her scream echoed across the valley interrupting her chant.
He swung Vengeance into a downward arc on the distracted tanari'i and the black blade bit into the wing severing it to the bone, half of it dropping wiggling to the forest floor. The vrock swung around and faced him, the creature's loud shriek pouring from its blood-stained beak.
Lem jumped back as it dislodged Red from its talon and turned to face him. Vengeance yearned for blood and the tanari'i squawked as they circled a practiced dance of death. Lem's steps matched the movement of Vengeance, the vrock following the deadly edge with its glowing eyes. One slip, one mistake was all it needed and it would be over.
However, a wounded adversary is the most dangerous when backed into the corner. The vrock came at him again shrieking, feinting left before swinging right. Lem, following the blade's lead met it full force not falling for the feint, the impact knocking him back a step but he still managed to sever the right clawed hand. Another shriek filled the night.
The vrock leaped back its calls echoing around them and Lem came forward. There could be no quarter. Behind him, he could see Red's glowing eyes in the dark.
Glowing? The momentary glimpse cost him a hit and he felt the sting of the Vrock's claws against his shoulder. He leaped back but it pushed in, his head pounding as the vrock let a series of vicious strikes against his torso, the movements becoming a blur as they bounced off the dark edge of Vengeance. Each hit clanged as claw on steel produced sparks.
Enough of this, Lem thought as the sword continued to play with the creature. The next swipe arced down against the blade but instead of pushing it to the side, Lem stepped into its path, his sword following through, sinking into the vrock's chest, blurred even to his own vision he felt the stunning blow as it bit through feathers and bone.
The vrock stared at him, its eyes dulling even as it pulled itself away from Lem, trying desperately to pull itself off the blade. The skin where Vengeance touched burned, and acrid smoke rose up into the air. And then the vrock fell into itself, banished into the abyss from where it was summoned.
Vengeance fell free the body vanished.
Lem now had a new problem. In the clearing, Red's eyes glowed and they only brightened in intensity as she struggled. His summoned globe of light went out.
"Lem," she cried out. "Run!" Her voice had taken on an ethereal quality, a divine goddess reaching down to speak to him, a mere mortal. Fire erupted at her fingertips and spread over her body, her mouth opened to scream and flames shot out.
He began to chant a spell Erendil taught him before they'd set out. He never understood why the half-elf thought the spell necessary at the time but now as he watched the unstoppable inferno pour out of Red's body and wash over him, he finally understood.
~~~~
Red opened her eyes, the last memories of the fight with the vrock fresh in her mind. She was whole again healed.
Lem? No, she thought, tears springing to her eyes. She sat up quickly, realizing there was a cloak covering her naked body. She clutched the cloak to her chest as she took in her surroundings. She wasn't sitting in a pile of ashes but in a cave next to a small fire. Lem was sitting on the other side of it, his eyes on her, his black sword across his lap.
"Lem," she gasped. "I thought--"
Dropping Vengeance to the ground with a clatter he sprang up closing the distance between them. He gently took her face in his hands and pressed his lips against hers telling her exactly how he felt without uttering a single word.
