Inside the tent, Seras saw the bone-armoured goblin walking down a long path towards her, besides him a figure in decorative robes. A few smaller goblins seemed to be running in the opposite direction, down into the depths. It appeared that the large tent had been obscuring a cave entrance embedded in the rock face. On the goblin leaders approach his expression grew focused and angry, staring with a fierce fury towards Seras.

“I could have sworn I already killed you.” The robed wizard said.

The figure spoke in an elegant female voice, matching the smooth features of her face that poked out of her hood. The robed woman lifted her wooden staff and pointed it forward. A yellowing crystal appeared to glow on its end as the wood of the staff appeared to almost ripple.

Immediately Seras levitated into the air, a prism of shifting black and white light seemed to be surrounding her, Seras struggled, wretching against the force that now controlled her.

“Fuck you bitch, I’m going to kill you!” Seras shouted. The mage constricted her, and she gave a shriek in pain. Adil lifted his arrow and Swift quickly shot a firebolt. Holding the staff in one hand the mage waved her free hand and the firebolt dissipated on it.

“Please child, there is no need for that,” The mage assured.

Adil still thinking of something to do pulled his bowstring tighter. The mage looked unimpressed.

“You there, I will let you go if you shoot the young lady," She said.

Adil looked to his side at Seras, she struggled, bracing the pain and glanced down to Adil with furrowed eyes. Adil thought, at least if Seras died she could resurrect. He shot the arrow at the witch in dark robes, she seemed to wave a hand again and a strange bark grew from it, shattering the arrow against the wood.

“Pity,” she said. The witch took a step towards the two, Swift tried again, this time with his short sword. He ran forward. The mage moved her free and brushed it against what seemed to be a dead tree growth embedded in the rock wall, a dark root cascaded across the floor, splitting the ground as ti travelled. T-he snaking roots hooked Swift's leg dragging him to the ground. The dark mage pulled him closer, constraining him further as the rocky roots wrapped around him. She put her hand under his face.

“You're a pretty one,” she said.

The goblin leader with his bone-decorated armour went forward and in a human tongue said

“Before… seen them... Killed..”

“Are you sure you haven’t confused them with someone else? I know how they look the same to you.”

“No... These... Weak… Killed” The mage looked into the goblin's eyes and nodded solemnly. She turned again to the others.

“It is interesting. I have to wonder what sort of strange magic could have brought you back,” She said, rolling a finger on the side of Swift's face, he winched as the finger got closer to his eye.

Adil quickly understood he couldn't win this fight, but he could talk his way out of it.

"Why do you work with the goblins?" Adil asked her

"What could controlling these people possibly give you?"

A slight grin appeared in the shadows of the dark-mages hood.

"I work with them because I think that it is right."

"Are you against the violence?"

"I am not against violence dear one, especially violence towards the church and the likes of this here young lady."

Seras struggling under her captivity murmured "Run."

"Boy. The colour of your armour on your wrist, it looks peculiar. Where di you find it?"

The goblin turned away and looked over to what appeared to be his master. He said in a goblin tongue some wording Adil could not translate.-

The mage pushed Swift further to the ground and put a foot down on him, holding him in place. She lifted her staff to Adil.

The mage then said in a stern voice. “If you do not tell us where you found it, you and your friends will suffer a lot of pain.”

Adil glanced at his arm, he had added a piece of armour he found from his spawn spot. It was scratched and dented from the tainted wolves attack.

After a moment went by the dark mage's staff appeared to shift and Seras crashed into the ground, tendrils of rocky roots shooting out fo the ground and wrapping around her. Adil shot an arrow but she blocked it with her staff. She shifted the staff once more and then the prism of light cascaded around Adil, lifting him into the air.

"Aaaaah," Adil screamed.

The magic force began crushing him, intense pain felt as his bones began to press into positions they shouldn’t. Luckily the pain was still being suppressed by the goblin brew. The mage stopped.

“Well?” She asked.

Swift looked up to Adil and they met eyes, Swift had a serious look on his face and when Adil saw it somehow he knew. He nodded and then closed his eyes, ready.

“Run.” Adil murmured, and Seras grumbled an “Uuhrhrh?..”.

The witch shone a dark and vibrant aura, tendrils of black and white passing around her:

“Tell me where you found the armou-.. what?”.

She looked down at Swift only to see an expression coated in fire. An explosion erupted from her feet knocking her back as she did all she could to minimize the damage.

Swift had focused on his inner fire energy again. Releasing all his power, finding his centre point and relinquishing control. He focused on the pain Seras felt, how she was driving through, how this was the last chance and he could not give up trying only to enhance the surging power. Only when the Witch had noticed what was going on did he let out a smile. A smile coated in fire as an explosion burst forth from his eyes, mouth and his very being.

*BOOM*

notification

Party member Swift has died

Adil and Seras were blown out of the tent and landed on the floor, in a smouldering wreck they saw no remains of Swift's clothes. The mage was on her knees an expression was like that of a toxic player bested by a noob. She coughed out some blood and trying to get up she collapsed back down.

The goblin leader, however, had taken little damage, he launched himself out the tent and went for Adil. Adil managed to parry but the blow still pushed his sword into shoulder injuring him through pure force. Seras slammed her fist into the goblins head, it battered it and he was knocked to the side, he got up again but seemingly he was finding it difficult to walk.

“No!” cried the lady on the ground.

Seras had grabbed Adil and they started running. It seemed that Adil had gained enhanced endurance from goblin alcohol. Which came in hugely useful as they ran as fast as they could.

They kept running, through the camp and past the rocky formations, Seras and Adil held the pace until Adil began panting. They looked back towards the camp, seeing a black-white glow in the air of that direction. They kept moving a distance more not stopping.