-----Sol rips into the remaining guard with renewed fervour, frustrated at his poor attempts so far. His blows come in low and high, seeking a way past the orc's shield.
-----"Fall back, Garrison!" Sarah suggests as she casts another spell.
-----Raven moves to flank the last guard with his next attack. The move pays off as Raven takes the guard down with two rapid moves with his twin swords.
-----Sol likewise delivers a swift slash to the last guard. Suddenly, he sees that before him and the Hunter stands a now critically wounded guard and the prone commander.
-----In the next moment, that condition is improved further as Raven gives a back slash that rips the throat from the guard. Before the young warrior stands the magically held half-orcish commander in his dark armor with eyes ablaze with hate.
-----The Lathanian blade cleaves through the commander's skull and the body drops. Critical now, the half-orc stares at the Gorian with little of its life left as it lies in an ever-widening pool of blood.
-----The huge cat roars and misses biting an orc spear bearer. The orc skips aside with a fear-stricken expression.
-----Sarah finishes her spell. This time her body shifts and molds and eventually becomes a unicorn. Some of the orcs glower with anger at the new form.
-----Another flurry of activity takes place almost at the same time! Sol delivers the deathblow, raising his sword and cutting through the commander's neck.
-----Meanwhile, the orcs with crossbows release their first volley as the bolts fire down from the stairs. The cat and the wolf leap into the fending orcs off to the right, while Garrison staggers back, sparing a quick astonished look at the unicorn.
-----The cat misses contact with the orcs although the soldiers back and scatter before her. The wolf gives one spear bearer a light bite to its arm.
-----Now a deadly hail of bolts rains down upon the battle, its archers little caring about their comrades among the fray. Out of the adventurers, two bolts strike the huge cat's flanks causing it to limp back badly wounded. Garrison takes a shot to the chest and the woodsman falls in front of the unicorn. Caranip rushes to his side crying, "Sir, you've been hit!"
-----"It's not the first time," Garrison weakly smiles at her. "Protect your mistress," and then nodding toward the frantic action toward the stairs, he adds, "and my other friends."
-----Strangely, a bolt takes an orc that is close to the critically wounded woodsman and two more drop two soldiers slowly menacing the unicorn.
-----No one else takes damage from the crossbow bolts!
-----The unicorn stomps its feet and charges for the orcs that are closest to the injured cat, giving the animal time to slink away and lick its wounds.
-----Sol surges up the steps towards the crossbowmen. His teeth are clenched in fury as he eyes his targets with pure malice.
-----The Hunter quickly moves past the young warrior, his twin swords poised for orcish necks. Some of the orcs drops their crossbows and grab their axes, but they are not fast enough. With his forward momentum, Raven stabs both swords through chain mailed chests and throws the dying orcs back into other soldiers on the stairs.
-----Sol slices into another orc, casting it to one side where it barely hangs on to the railing as well as its life.
-----In the ensuing chaos, Raven and Sol quickly parry off orcish axes. Down on the floor, an orcish spear stabs in and pierces the wolf's hide. The wolf growls in anger, while the cat moves closer to help the wolf fend off the attackers. Elsewhere, an orcish axe misses Lovan, who yells triumphantly at his attackers, "Your leader is dead! Can you not see the time of woe is upon you?!" The words cause somewhat of a cautious reaction from the orcs.
-----Suddenly the air above Caranip begins to flicker and shine with patterns of color. The gnome girl stands close to where Garrison lies, waving a glowing stick of incense. Caranip looks oddly as if she is conducting, but instead of music being played, the colors pulsate and change with her motion. A rank of orcs carrying polearms, located over to the right flank, suddenly stop their motion and stare at the pattern of colors. With an enthralled expression, they freeze in place and pay no attention to the rest of the battle.
-----Lovan grunts as he swings his warhammer but once again fails to connect with an enemy.
-----Raven presses forward slicing the neck of another orc so savagely it causes the enemy on the stairs to flinch away from the Hunter's wrath.
-----Right next to him, Sol downs another orc and the line between the two heroes and where the one-eyed orc stands with his guards is thinned!