-----Sol only had the assassin's voice to guide by, but it would have to be enough.
-----Sol faintly hears Sarah's voice from the other side of the door calling to him.
-----As the voice continues to speak, it is difficult for Sol to place its location as the chamber seems to have an uncanny effect on sounds. Sol steps forward and his toe comes in contact with the first step. As Sol takes the first two steps, the enemy speaks again.
-----"You may not have known, but that beholder you and your friends so interestingly dispatched with, actually was a sort of guardian to what lie below this place. I admire your courage. If I were betting, I would have sworn the thing would have eliminated you and your gallant friends. I was only waiting in the shadows for the beholder and its army to kill you so I could claim the stone from your body."
-----Sol then hears a much louder pounding at the door behind him and recognizes Raven's voice calling, "Sol, . . . Sol!"
-----Internally, Sol glowers. He hated waiting, but it seemed necessary now. If he couldn't locate where the sounds of his enemy were coming from, then he'd have to react to the type of sounds.
-----Harshly, he replies, "An' what lies below?" The idea that he was conversing with this one, filled Sol's stomach with bile. Still . . . If he can just keep the half-elf talking . . .
-----At the moment, Sol intends to continue climbing the stairs, letting the assassin continue speaking, if the bastard was so inclined.
-----Low laughter is heard first to answer Sol. Then the hated enemy continues as his voice takes on a dangerous whispering quality, "What lies below? An army, Sol Herron. The army of the great spider queen. The likes of which no army that dwells in the light can stop."
-----After a pause, the assassin adds a question with a hint of finality, "So I ask you one last time, will you surrender the stone?"
-----Sol reaches the top of the platform, which must be only four steps above the ground level. He suddenly gets the feeling the elven assassin is only a few feet in front of him.
-----"No." Comes the simple reply. Then Sol's blade sings as it arcs upwards, his heel of his sword hand flicking around and up, putting as much force into the swing as possible, trusting the fates to guide his hand. Exuberantly he calls out, "STRATOR!" The word echoes out, full of raging emotion and the need to exact retribution.
-----Sol is dimly aware of the pain from his chest, the injury inflicted by the attack from the eye tyrant. The Lathanian blade becomes a reflection of the Rager's and Sol's anger. The young warrior feels his weapon rip through flesh and leather producing a grunt of pain.
-----Suddenly there is a light! A flame flares from a dropped torch at Sol's feet. In front of him, the Gorian sees his deadly foe grasping at his bleeding chest while reaching for his weapon at his side.
-----The amber eyes of the half-elf gleam in pain and furious anger at the sudden attack.
-----Sol senses that they stand on top of a semi-circular platform; its straight edge against a large massive stone portal positioned in the wall.
-----The assassin, his weapon now drawn, moves into a strange defensive stance.
-----Seeing the portal and having the assassin talk of a key, Sol realizes that his foe has probably led him exactly where he wanted the Gorian.
-----In the end, it mattered not to Sol. The elf had survived long enough, and the first wound that Sol inflicted only urge him onwards. Doing his best to endure and ignore the injury, Sol darts forward and levels two opposing diagonal swings of the Lathanian blade, seeking to drive the half-elf off the platform.
-----As Sol brings his first swing to bear on his opponent, the assassin meets the blade with an effective parry. Spinning, the young warrior frees his weapon and surprises his foe by deliver a back swing into the half-elf's sword arm! Suddenly the assassin steps back as he grasps his injured arm.
-----An instant later, the enemy thrusts his sword forward trying to impale Sol's belly. The Lathanian blade throws off the attack and the assassin lifts his arms for balance. The half-elf then attempts to slash at Sol as if to confuse him, but the Gorian stands his ground throwing off the swing by his foe.
-----Sol's next blow flickers out and around, diverting at the last possible moment towards the assassin's legs. His follow-up attack is a full thrust at the opponent's centre.
-----The Lathanian sword turns and strikes the assassin in the left upper leg muscle. At the same time, the opponent's sword swoops over Sol's head.
-----As the half-elf recovers momentarily from the attack, Sol sees him limp a bit with a trail of blood streaming from his leg. The assassin looks hurt but the angry and the defiant expression never leaves his pale face.