The Battle of Draconi Forest

[MadEmperor]

Kah nuzzled into River's hand. "I'm not going to suddenly forget how. I'll be fine. Really."

"Yeah, just disgusting." Thrax chuckled, smirking. "And epic love song material."

Kah made a noise that River understood to be a blush. "Please don't." 

[DragonSong]

"If I hear my name in a song, your tail is forfit," River informed the gnoll without looking at him.

Hanako snorted and mouthed, "Busted" at him. She flicked her own tails.

"Alright. Well, some wards and a dragon will certainly help keep us safe," River decided as she stepped back from her mate with a nod. "Hanako and I can start building a fire."

[MadEmperor]

When they found a defensible spot, Kahroan shifted back into a dragon and curled up on the open side of the rocky cleft they had found.


A thunderous cacophony resounded from Thrax's trap wards, alerting the party to danger. Kahroan's eyes shot open, and he hurriedly rose to his feet. Everyone up! We have company!"

Thrax had awoken confused, but hearing the dragon cleared the cobwebs from his thoughts immediately. Gripping his axe, he scrambled to his feet. "I'm up! I'm up!"

[DragonSong]

River had been sleeping in wolf form, curled up not far from Kahroan's head. She jolted awake with a snarl, immediately in the defensive. Across the campfire, Hanako snapped awake and almost instantly into her larger fox form, nearly twice River's size with all three tails lashing.

Fire rose just behind the wards when the massive fox yipped, but she warned, "I can't keep that up forever!"

[MadEmperor]

Kahroan quickly scanned the approach as Thrax joined the others in their strange defensive line.

"Orders, boss?" the bard asked Kah.

"Me?! She's the experienced one!" Ka answered.

"Well, somebody better come up with something fast!"

[DragonSong]

We need a count. River sniffed the air. More than before—we took out at least eight, but there's ten...maybe a dozen. Hana, flank left, try to use the fire to herd them toward Kah. And tell Thrax to keep one hand on the strings in case they start that spell up again.

Hanako nodded, reaching the order to Thrax as she bounded off in an arc to begin popping fireballs off at their attackers.

[MadEmperor]

"Got ya!" Thrax nodded, ducking behind Kah. He flipped Stormsong around and kept one hand hovering over the strings.

Kahroan planted his feet in preparation as a group of bandits fleeing the fire came into range. Before they could take cover, he exhaled a bright gout of icy flames.

[DragonSong]

The bandits split to try to avoid Kah's fire, but only a handful of them did. River lunged at one who skirted too close to her mate with a glaive.

Hanako warned, "Music incoming!" half a second before the melody began trickling through the air.

River pressed her ears back flat, as though that would help, and began howling wildly even as she pounced on another bandit.

[MadEmperor]

Thrax began playing the loudest, liveliest, and hardest-to-ignore song he knew. So far, at least, the enchanted music couldn't be heard over his playing.

Kah grabbed one in his jaws and bit down with a wet crunch. He flung the body at the rest of the enemies and prepared to unleash a second blast. That was when the lightning bolt struck between them and the bandits, momentarily blinding the party members facing that direction.

[DragonSong]

Hanako gave a startled yip, flinging herself away from the lightning strike. River screwed her eyes shut, but a fraction of a second too late—the after-image burned hot behind her eyes.

She barked, trying to let the others know where she was as she did her best to navigate away from the thick of the fighting while her vision began spotting back.

[MadEmperor]

Kah groaned, shaking his head as if that would help clear his vision. He managed to bat away a bandit with one paw without hitting an ally, but that was the best he could do.

"Kill them all!" shouted the large half-elf from before, and the rest of the gang charged.

Thrax had one job, to keep the song going as long as possible. His fingers could bleed, but unless the fight was over, there was no stopping. He retreated further into the cleft, strumming with intensity.

Suddenly, a figure jumped down behind him and held a curved dagger to his neck. The second the music stopped, the charge halted. The leader spoke up with a voice like iron. "I don't typically accept surrender, but you lot seem... valuable. But not the gnoll, he's of no use to us alive. So if you resist, he dies first."

[DragonSong]

It was the tense, uncomfortable break in a fight that kept River's hackles raised, her whole body still thrumming with adrenaline. She carefully took her human form, hands up to show she was unarmed.

Hanako had her lip pulled back over her teeth. "Let him go," she snarled at the leader, a hint of flame flickering around her paws.

[MadEmperor]

The hooded bandit pressed the dagger closer, drawing a drop of blood. Thrax gulped. "Guys. Just remember why we all agreed to do this."

Kahroan raised a brow slightly. That was an odd thing for the gnoll to say.

[DragonSong]

Hanako frowned at the bard, unsure what he was getting at. River found herself in a position that she never enjoyed: frozen in place.

"Look, we aren't fighting," the shifter snapped at the bandit leader. "Just...let him go. Let's...talk about this."

[MadEmperor]

Valdor smirked. "That's better. Now... you, dragon, take a more manageable form. We can't have you pulling a fast one."

Kahroan nodded slowly and shifted to his near-human form. He then thought over Thrax's words. They took the job for the--in his head, he heard the two women saying "coin" at the same time in response to...

Zeldrinn! he cried out in beastspeak. That's no bandit.

[DragonSong]

Both Hana and River twitched, heads turning toward him fractionally as they tried to acknowledge the words without giving too much away.

Do we have a signal? River asked quickly.

[MadEmperor]

We really should have worked one out. Kah pondered what to do. I wish we could ask him through beastspeak.

Validor was none the wiser as he motioned his men closer. "Tie them up. Use the spellbinding ropes." The man himself walked confidently toward Thrax and "Zeldrinn."

[DragonSong]

Hana pulled a face in agreement, though to the bandits she likely just looked frustrated. River was thinking quickly.

Spellbinders will stop Hana's illusions, but not our shifting, right?

The kitsune agreed, eyes fixed on their bard. Should be fine—might dampen my fire a bit, but shifting should be alright.

Okay. So we play along a bit longer. Get them to let down their guard.

[MadEmperor]

The bandits bound the three shifting creatures' arms behind their backs with the shimmering anti-magic rope.

Validor stepped up to the gnoll, looking over the bard's shoulder at the hooded rogue. He studied the man intently. "You--"

Suddenly the dagger was withdrawn, and Thrax headbutted Validor.

At the same time, the rogue drew his bow and shot the bandit still binding Hana.

[DragonSong]

"Fuck yes." Hanako leaped and twisted away as the man binding her wrists fell. She landed in a crouch and immediately fired off a blast of blue flame at Validor's back.

River was less showy; she just turned and snapped her suddenly wolf jaws closed on her captor's throat.

Kah, can you cover us? If they could hold the bandits back long enough for everyone to scramble onto the dragon's back, they should be able to get away.