Duty and War(Rowan/Yavanna Rank Up)

In darkness they moved, away from the massive host of undead. Rowan, and his lifelong companion Yavanna had needed to know. To see Her with their own eyes, the Legendary eldari healer who had led a brutal assault on the heanta in blackspire pass. Liliana Korvesa. They had observed the army for hours, but there was no sign of her. Only a multitude of monstrosities and the dead, with a scattering of necromancers. More than had expected. But Liliana had not been with the army, or horde might be more prudent. Where she was, they had no idea, but their best guess was somewhere in Serenity Valley. At the source of all of this. So They had decided to catch up with the others.

They had made it to a safe distance, well ahead of the horde now. Time enough to stop for ten minutes and Have a bite to eat. Rowan fished rations out of his pack and handed some to Yavanna. "Its not much, but it'll keep you going." He said, unwrapping his own sachel of seeds, flatbred and cheese. He sat in silence for a while, but the situation was oldly familiar. "This is kind of like that special assigment we went on during the second great war, isn't it? The one with the Undari and Heanta commanders we faught." There was more than one special assignment they'd taken care of during the time, but this one had always stood out to him. They'd both grown in strength the most during that time.


It was a hot midsummer day on the front. The morning skirmish had come and gone, Heanta atop their Voth'Kan warhorses had charged forth to lob Javalins an at the eldari. Riders atop Enderon elk went to meet them, and a scuffle occured. There were a few casualties on both sides, but then both sides retreated, and the day's excitment was over. It wouldn't be long before another assualt, perhaps the Eldari this time, was launched, and it would probably end similarly. Each side was testing the other, daily. Waiting. One day, the Eldari, or the heanta might not react fast enough, and things would quickly desend into a full on battle. Such events had occured before, but not in a while. Neither side had the man power, stretched along the length of the exclusion zone as they were. No, this was a war of atrition on the front. But things were not so straight forward everywhere. Other battles were being faught, other menouvers made. The Eternal Watch faught its own war against the Sanguine Dominion, and it didn't follow the same rules.

On this day, Rowan and Yavanna had been summoned by Camralan Inialos. "Elbereth, Aratris, special assignment. A force of heanta and undari made landfall 2 miles past the front, they hit our supply train hard and vanished. This is the second attack. No eyes on where they came from but you can take a guess. Your leading a detachment to bait them out again and deal with it. You can guess the Dominion are involved, and I want their heads on my desk. Good luck." Rowan nodded and left the the tent. "Looks like we're not getting that leave just yet."

Yavanna Elbereth didn't even have to look to trace the path Rowan Aratris had chosen. Though it had been many years since they were last on a mission in the field together, it felt like only yesterday. This was unsurprising, given that they had known each other and worked together for over seven-hundred years. This instinct and intuition they shared gave them a marked advantage in that they could almost completely focuse on their surroundings as they moved, and move they did. Ever since they had learned of the potential involvement of Liliana Korvesa at the root of the undead crisis that now threatened to engulf the Kingdom of Mondolin, Yavanna and Rowan had made it their business to track down and verify this disturbing revelation. The task had not been simple, however, and as the the monstrous legion of undead soldiers and other horrors advanced inexorably towards Mith Silvanus and what would surely turn out to be a bloody clash, Yavanna and Rowan were forced to give up their pursuit and rendezvous with their allies in the Human capital. Yavanna had no reason to doubt Fayla Shor's recollection, so the logical answer was that Korvesa still remained hidden in Serenity Valley, scheming Na'Sora-knows-what.

Once they had put enough distance between themselves and the ceaseless but slow-moving horde. Though the Eldari were tougher and more durable than the average Human, Rowan and Yavanna even more so, they had nonetheless recognized that they were pushing themselves towards their admittedly vast limits. Once they found a secure spot to stop, a small but dense copse of trees within Mondolin's borders, the lifelong friends ceased their mad dash to Mith Silvanus and took up rest and nourishment. Rowan broke out rations for both of them as Yavanna had not had time to prepare for a forced march of this nature before setting out for Calixto with Mariel Shor. They discussed recent events and used their experience to analyze the situation. Both agreed that they would be needed if Korvesa was to be stopped. They ate in silence for moment, before Rowan broke the pause by bringing up and old mission they had ventured on during the Seond Great War that was similar to their current one. Yavanna smiled in realization.
"You mean, the one where we got our asses handed to us but somehow managed to survive?" In truth, though the war was lamentable both for the loss of life and sheer lack of a worthy cause behind it, Yavanna did value what she had learned during that time, and the strength they both gained. She leaned back against her chosen tree stump, and allowed her mind to slip back into the past, to a hot midsomer's day over two centuries ago...


Yavanna Elbereth was a veteran of conflict during her long life, but she still found herself questioning the reasons behind the current conflict that her people had found themselves in. She had just returned to her main camp, and herself and Rowan Aratris dismounted from their Endaron Elks as the higher-ups did their usual post-mortems of the day's skirmish. As had been the norm for the years that this conflict had been going on, the timetable was almost like clockwork: they rode to battle, fought, retreated, buried the dead and repeat. What Yavanna found trouobling was that despite the loss of life endured by both sides, though she had no love for the Heanta and Undari, nothing was changing. Both sides threw lives into the meat-grinder that was the Heanta-Eldari border, but with little to no effect on Asmir, save for providing more lost souls for Novaris. As she and Rowan made their reports to their superiors, Yavanna took a little heart in the fact that they were about to be rotated out for leave.

At least, that was the plan, before Rowan informed her that they were being summoned to a briefing with Camralan Inialos, the head of the Eternal Watch. The Watch was the Eldari "special forces" division, made up of the most accomplished operatives the Eldari could produce, including Rowan and Yavanna. They operated mostly independently of the Eldari army, answering directly to the Golden Council, and their operatives were given vital tasks that need particular skill to accomplish. As they discovered when they arrived at Inialos' tent, Rowan and Yavanna were about to be given such a task. As Inialos explained the situation to them, Yavanna steeled herself for what was to come. The Watch protected the Eldari, but they also acted as a direct defence against the Heanta's own special forces, the Sanguine Dominion. Though the bulk of the war was being fought at the front lines, the Watch and the Dominion conducted their own clandestine war beneath the surface, where the usual rules and regulations for war were less important than getting the job done.

Their mission was to confront the Dominion operatives that were organizing the raids behind Eldari lines from the sea, and deal with the Undari and Heanta that were leading the assaults. Inialos was never one to mince words, and he made it clear that the heads of the enemy commanders were the only acceptable outcome. Camralan Inialos was a proud Eldari, but that pride gave him an almost fanatical zealousness towards his duty of defending his people. He had very few qualms about doing what he felt needed to be done. It made him a strong leader, but it also made him very dangerous. But Yavanna was a professional and experienced operative, and she purged all doubt and focused on the task ahead. She smiled wryly as Rowan quipped about not getting the leave they were due.
"Oh well. You never know, maybe they'll give us double leave if we actually make it back. I'll meet you at the rally point in thirty minutes."

Thirty minutes later, Rowan and Yavanna departed with their detachment for the site of the most recent attack by the enemy. The plan was to use their detachment to lay a trap for the enemy raiding party by using the detachment, disguised as a supply convoy, to lure out the main force while Yavanna and Rowan engaged the leader or leaders of the operation. The "convoy" moved slowly along the usual route that the other convoys had taken, with the detachment spread in the standard formation. Rowan and Yavanna trailed the convoy on foot and kept a look out. They spread out to cover the most ground, using a system of birdcalls that they had devised to communicate securely over distance to remain alert. Night fell as they reached their destination, a stretch of road that passed closest to the sea. It was an advantage the Undari possessed that the Eldari had no real counter for, besides vigilance. Yavanna and Rowan closed slightly to stay in sight of the caravan in the looming darkness. Yavanna used a birdcall to tell Rowan to halt his approach, and she stopped dead herself. Something was off.

It was then the attack began.

Rowan patted Yavanna on the shoulder. "We both know that's never going to happen." He said with a grim smile. Then he left to collect the gear needed for the journey, though not his sword, since he rarely left that down these days. It was neither safe or smart to walk around camp without a weapon, an attack could come from anywhere. Like the time the sanguine dominion had used a magma mauler to bore a tunnel under the exclusion zone and came up through the latrines, undoubtedly by mistake. The magi had come up with a way to detected such an attack, and the tactic was eventually abandoned.

Dark was setting in when they were finally in position travelling along a coastal road where a previous attack had occured. While Rowan and Yavanna were well hidden, the decoy caravan was in the open, and instead of food it hauled Eldari warriors hidden beneath tarps. As they watched the convoy, Yavanna let out a bird call, telling Rowan to halt. He tweeted back, sensing it too. The convey moved along, but the sea began to stir. and then, Undari emerged, and with them came heanta contained air pockets created with water. Clever. The heanta hit land and closed on the convoy at twice the speed of the Undari, who hung back, firing arrows and launching balls of water that shattered wheels and killed horses. The heanta were almost on the convoy when Rowan and Yavanna gave the signal. An arrow launched from his bow that caught fire, lighting the night sky with a sudden burst. The Eldari beneath tarps discarded their cover, and Rowan charged from his hiding place.

It was easy to spot the sanguine warriors, a duo, one who led from the front and was made mostly of muscle. His massive axes ripped an eldari warrior in half before he seen it coming. The other hung back, slinging balls of lethal energy at unaware targets. Rowan didn't hesitate, changing at the closest heanta and cutting him in half with a mighty swing. But Rowan didn't charge the big heanta. He looked to Yavanna, giving her first choice of opponants.

Yavanna saw Rowan halt at her signal, though she knew that his keen senses had already detected what was afoot. Sure enough, the Undari-Heanta ambush party emerged from the waterfront, with the Undari projecting air bubbles to transport their less aquatically-inclined allies. Yavanna admired the ingenuity, but it was not the time for study. The ambush party advanced quickly, with the Heanta troops leading the line while the Undari attacked from range. Yavanna waited for the ambush party to draw nearer to the caravan, before she and Rowan launched their fire arrows to signal their unit to break cover. The Eldari unit emerged from the caravan and clashed with the Heanta, while a back-up unit of Eldross began to exchange fire with the Undari ranged force. Yavanna spotted their main targets not long after Rowan did. The Sanguine Dominion operatives were unmistakable, and they were forceful. One was a brute with impressive power, though he also possessed deceptive speed for a Heanta of his size, and he cut down an Eldari troop with unnerving ease. The other Sanguine operative was a more calculating sort, keeping his distance with blasts of energy. Yavanna looked at Rowan, with the big man seemingly allowing her the choice of opponent. She nodded to her friend before cutting her way through an Undari troop to get to the brute. En route, she activated her Blades of Fury, and unleashed a pair of criss-crossed diagonal slashes, followed by a horizontal back across, with the aim of diverting the brute's attention.


Mehxta, the other operative, was watching the battle unfurl before him, and he was unsurprised to see one of the two Eternal Watch officers engage his compatriot. This of course meant that the other Eldari scum was coming for him, so he aimed a flurry of ten Very Weak energy balls at the oncoming enemy. Then, drawing his two daggers, he readied his stance to confront the enemy.
"You dare challenge the Sanguine Dominion? You're just a worthless maggot, one who needs to learn their place like all of these other maggots." The man grinned with a mouthful of razor sharp teeth, the smile of a predator. "Very well then, try not to bore me."

Rowan looked at the second heanta and moved. The heanta unleased a barrage of blasts that Rowen easily dealt with by rapidly deflecting them with quick movements of his sword, sending them back in the heanta's direction with less accuracy. The heanta started mouthing off, but Rowan ignored him and charged forward, closing with him with a sudden burst of speed and attempting to cut the heanta down the middle. "Shut up." He said, then followed up his attack with a thrusting uppercut aimed to hit in the groin and split the Heanta in half upwards.



Gorthyx wasn't very smart for a member of the sanguine dominion, but what he lacked in brains he made up for in brute strength and a canny battle prowess. Also he could hit things really hard. And he liked hitting things really hard. He liked that when he hit them really hard, they tended to die, except that one person who didn't. And thats how he ended up working for the sanguine dominion. Gorthyx seen the big eldari, and he grinned in excitement. He'd just hit one of the littler ones and it died easily, so he wanted to fight the big one. Gorthyx frowned as the big eldari charged Mehxta. "No fair Mehxta I wanna fight that one!" He grumbled and started stomping that way, decking an eldari in the snoze hard enough to cave his face in as he tried to get in Gorthyx's way. And then something hit him in the back, and after several seconds he registered pain and frowned.

Gorthyx turned around in a calm manner. Atleast he thought it was calmly, but it was violent, his axes swinging wildly and cleaving a man in half. He barely registered it as he zoned in on the one who attacked him, hoping they were big. All he seen was a woman. There was no big eldari hiding behind her. Infact the people around had backed away, leaving them space to engage each other. Gorthyx was unsure what to do. The last time he'd faught a woman she beat him up and gave him a job. There was no doubt they were dangerous, but this one looked puny, barely reaching Gorthyx's elbow. "Mehxta switch with me! This one looks weak, like you!" Mehxta gave no response and Gorthyx sighed. "Fine, I'll make you die first." Gorthyx said, and raised both axes, slamming them into the ground. The ground ripped open and shattered in a cone that reached out to the woman and passed, before exploding upwards in a violent hail of rock and pain. Gorthyx lunged after her, taking a heafty swing with one axe and tried to deck her in the snoze with his other hand.

Yavanna was unsurprised when her opening salvo did little except anger the hulking brute. Spotting the source, the brute cut his way through an Eldari troop to confront her, though he still complained that his companion got to fight Rowan. A natural clearing formed in the fracas, and Yavanna's foe failed to hide his disappointment in the diminutive stature of his opponent. She smiled, which only served to make the brute mad. But mad was what she wanted, and she drew Silver Swallow as the man slammed his own weapons into the floor, sending a cone of destruction along the ground and forcing Yavanna to gracefully dive-roll out of danger before whatever happened next. Just as well, because the cone exploded upwards with ferocity. The brute then followed with an axe swing that she dodged, before getting her weapon up to block the surprisingly sudden punch. The weapon protected her from the direct contact, but the force sent her sliding backwards a couple of feet. Yavanna knew quickness and smarts were going to be key here, as even a single direct strike from this mountain of a man would be game-ending.

Activating her Gifted Glide (which gives her +2 to her Agility for 4 posts) Yavanna moved in, keeping an eye out for an attack to come at her on her way in. She used her increased agility to try and close the distance, before going low and unleashing a pair of quick slices with her blade, aiming for the knee joints in the brute's leg armor. She then spun out the other side and aimed another pair of slices for the backs of the knees. It was going to be slow work to cut this hulk down to size, but she saw no reason why she couldn't...


Mehxta was unsurprised when the Eldari dealt with the opening volley handily. He used his daggers to delflect any of the returned shots that came too close to him, and smiled again.
"Well, looks like you passed basic training at least. Unfortunately for you, I am upper-class Heanta warrior. You are simply no match for a Heanta elite!" Before he could say more, Mehxta was forced to sidestep as the Eldari came at him with a sudden burst of speed and brought his weapon down, before sidestepping again as the weapon came back up. So he wasn't just a ponderous powerhouse, he could shift too. That suited Mehxta, who had been looking for a bigger challenge than the opposition had provided so far on these raids. When his scouts learned that the fabled Eternal Watch had sent agents to investigate, Mehxta couldn't resist the possibility of a real fight. He grinned at his foe and jerked his head towards the other fight between Gorthyx and the female Watch member. "Not bad, Eldari. You might actually last longer than your little partner over there. At least her fighting Gorthyx assures her of a quick death." With that, Mehxta suddenly shot forward, and aimed a thrust at Rowan's chest, before sliding between his legs and attempting a slice to the groin. He then regained his feet and aimed aslice to the neck with both blades before backing up for the retort.

Gorthyx glowered when the woman didn't die immediately. That wasn't what he expected and He didn't like things he didn't expect. Gorthyx tried and over head chop with both axes and the woman vanished. No she dodged under his attack, he realised, as she slashed at his knees, leaving cuts across his thick legs. She was behind him, and he felt blades slash at the back of his legs, but as quick as they bit skin stone began to spread. Blood was drawn but that was it, and Gorthyx's skin turned to stone across his entire body, which was why he never wore armor. Why slow himself down even more?

Gorthyx proceeded to spin in a circle, axes scything out to try and bisect the woman. He stopped after one spin but let the axes go, and the proceeded to spin around him, slowly expanding outwards, forcing the crowd and the woman back. One unlucky heanta lost an arm, and an Eldari too a glancing blow and was knocked prone, a knife quickly finding his throat after. Gortyx held his hands out and the axes snapped back into his grip, and then he leapt into the air towards the woman, slamming both axes downwards as he came down on top of her.


The Cocky heanta ran his mouth, before Rowan cut him off. But after dodging his attacks, he continued, looking in Yavanna's direction. He gave the big man a quick glance before shrugging. "I'm not worried." Mextha then proceeded to attack, opening with a thrust. Rowan slapped the blade aside with his hand, but before he could catch and lock said hand the shifty heanta slipped between his legs and tried to slice open his groin. Rowan lept aside, the blade catching the back of his boot and cutting through the tough leather to draw blood. Rowan glowered at the man who lunged up and attempted to slice at his throat. Rowan swung his free hand up, knocking the first blade away. The second sliced his arm, but he was fast enough to attempt to catch the heanta's hand before it got away. If he did get a grip on it, he would proceed to swing his sword, pommel first towards the heanta's face in an attempt to stun him with a heavy strike.

Either way he would follow after the heanta and aim a kick towards the gut, then a one handed overhead with his greatsword, before placing a second hand on to it and attempted to thrust the blade between Mextha's legs before quickly swiping left in an attempt to take his opponant's leg off at the knee.

Yavanna's gambit had paid off, with her blade finding flesh at the brute's knees and drawing first blood. However, her progress was stymied by the brute's flesh turning into stone, and her blade sank no further as she passed. She jumped back as an axe swing came her way, her foe spinning like a top before releasing the axes to continue spinning around him in an expanding radius. Yavanna slid beneath the axes as they passed, with the weapons causing significant collateral damage to the surrounding combatants, before being forced to dive-roll to the side as her foe leapt into the air and slammed down with both weapons hard.

Yavanna took precisely half of a second to survey the situation and decide on a course of action. With her opponent's new ability, she would have little chance of penetrating skin with a direct attack. Her only options were to either try and find a small gap between the stone plates - something which wasn't going to be easy to do without a high element of risk - or going for his eyes. Then another option came to mind as she saw the chinks in the armor where she had inflicted wounds already. She decided in the other half of the second what to do. Leaping back in, Yavanna activated her Blades of Fury, launching a sequential trio of energy slashes at the brute's face and eyes, before using Reposition to shift herself low and behind the brute in order to stab at the already wounded right leg, then bringing her blade across to slice at the left leg. She then scurried out from under him and prepared fro the retort.


Mehxta smiled as the Eldari defiantly told him that he wasn't worried.
"We will see." To be fair though, the Eldari proved to be no pushover, deflecting the thrust with his hand. Mehxta managed to get between the Eldari's legs, but the big man moved before he could finish his heir-ending maneuver, though he did catch the man's boot and draw blood. On the double slice Mehxta managed to draw more blood from the man's arm, but he then found his own arm being seized with sudden speed. Not panicking, Mehxta leaned to the side to avoid the pommel strike, and managed to get free of the man's grip. He had no time to think, however, as the Eldari follow him with a straight kick, which Mehxta sidestepped, before the Eldari's blade found its way low and attempted to take his leg off. Mehxta turned and backflipped over the blade, before his weapons transformed. The blades of his two knives became envelped in a fiery aura, with the aura extending the length of the blades to that of a knightly arming sword, roughly two feet or so. Mehxta then lunged forward again, aiming slashes for the man's legs, one for each, before unleashing a pair of horizontals at his neck. The fire blades deal the same damage as a blade of their size, but in burns and fire damage instead of physical, though they can be deflected by other weapons.

Gorthyx grinned wide at the woman. Look at her scurry around, trying her best and failing to hurt him. Sure she'd landed a few nicks, but a single blow from one of his axes would split her in half. Much like they had to the other eldari and heanta around them. It was only a matter of time. The woman dashed forward and fired blades of energy at him, but he blocked them with his axes. She dodged passed him, his arm swinging to try take her out but missed. She attacked at his leg with a thrust, and he felt pain as she drove her sword into his wound. Gorthyx howled in rage as she tried to do it to his other leg. Gorthyx gave her no time and threw a diving elbow her direction. She might slash his leg but she'd take an elbow dropped by a monster 3 times her weight for her trouble.

She backed off and Gorthyx got to his feet slightly limping. He was visibly annoyed now, mustache filled with rage. He threw an axe her direction then followed up, his claws popping out as they began exuding dark energy. His second axe was thrown, and then he was on her, swinging wildly with his mighty mits, aiming claw strikes filled with poison that would weaken and slow her. He aimed a chop with his left hand, sharp rock that could cut off heads surrounding his hand, at her sword arm. He finished off with an earth shattering wild kick to the side.


The heanta backed off after escaping Rowan's attacks, and his swords burst into flames, growing in length. Rowan windmilled his blade as the heanta tried to slice at his legs, knocking the attacks aside but catching a minor burn on his left leg. His own weapon began to glow as the heanta followed up with a pair of slashes at his neck. He backed of, blocking the blows before lunging forward peforming a powerful roundhouse slash the launched out a wave of cold energy from his blade. Even if the heanta escaped his blade, the wave of could would extend up to 10ft from Rowan. Rowan pushed his foe, not giving him a minute to breath and followed up with an overhead, twisting his body and shifting his legs, swishing his blade back upwards into an uppercut and falling into a high guard as he waited for his opponant's counter attack.

Yavanna's energy blades were dealt with handily by her opponent, who deflected them all with his axe. She then managed to slip by a swinging arm and scored a thrust to the leg, but her luck ran out quite soon after that. As she brought her sword across to slice at a weak point in the other leg, she realised that she had gotten too greedy with this move. Her world collapsed in on her as the great brute suddenly dropped on her with a massive elbow drop. Yavanna was crushed to the ground on her front as the elbow landed square on her back, driving the air out of her. She felt a couple of ribs crack, though she managed to keep her composure enough to roll away when the brute stood up, and she gained some distance before regaining her own feet and taking inventory.

Yavanna breathed deeply, internally scolding herself for making such a mistake. She felt the telltale pain of cracked ribs, though she was fortunate enough that none broke fully. From now on, she would have to fight smarter and consider every move. Putting her years of experience to work and compartmentalizing the pain that flared with every breath, Yavanna deflected the axe that had been hurled at her, before ducking the second one. The brute then closed, swinging his Heanta claws at her with vicious intent. She ducked and weaved, only barely managing to stay ahead of the attacks and avoid harm, before dive-rolling to avoid the stone-aided karate chop. As she regained her feet, however, she was blindsided by a sudden kick to the side that knocked her sprawling to the deck. Her already damaged ribs were tested to the limit, and at least one broke under the pressure. She gasped for air as she rose to a knee, coughing and spitting blood out onto the ground. Her only response was to ready for the next phase, while she tried to formulate a plan to get out of this alive.


Mehxta smiled evilly as the Eldari sustained a burn to his knee, though he dealt with the other attacks well. The Eldari's own weapon began to glow, and Mehxta was forced to slide low to avoid being decapitated by the wave of cold energy that erupted forth from the sword as it passed. Before he could fire himself in again, Mehxta then found hismelf having to evade an overhead down swing that would have cleanly split him in twain had he not sidestepped. He sidestepped the other way to avoid the uppercut, before launching himself into a counterattack. He attempted to bypass his opponent's guard by throwing the knife in his right hand at the Eldari's face, while he himself slid low, activating his right claw that began to seep with poisonous energy. He went for one leg with his remaining knife, while aiming for the the other knee with his claw, before suddenly leaping high and aiming a claw slash at his foe's face. Mehxta then backflipped away and readied for the return with the same shit-eating grin.

He had the wench on the ropes. That crushing elbow had flattened her hard to the ground and by the way she stood after the kick, he knew he'd broken bones. Now was the time to push the advantage and crush her, but Gorthyx wasn't so inclined. He decided to play with his kill. He slammed his foot into the ground, launching up a barrage of tiny stone spikes that shot towards her and would surely shred her if she wasn't quick, before lunging after her. He aimed a side kick for her head and followed it up with a thrust of his hand, turning it into a claw rake as he pulled back.


Rowan knocked aside the knife thrown for his face with his sword before he drove it down, using it to vault over the heanta as he tried to slide low and slash at his legs. Flipping back on to his feet he wasn't quick enough to avoid the slash to his face, claws tearing gauges through his flesh as he pulled back. The cuts were the least of his worries, for he'd seen the dark glow from the heanta's claws and knew what it meant. The effects were almost instant, sapping his strength and agility a great deal. His sword became clumbsy in weight, and his movements sluggish as he staggered back. The heanta lept away.

Taking his sword in two hands, he let himself adjust to the loss of strength. He knew he was in trouble, but his natural poison risistance would kick in soon, and the heanta would expect him to retreat and defend. So Rowan chose violence. He rushed forward and his weapon lit up with icey energy, before he performed three quick strikes with the blade, each strike imbued with cold energy that would deal weak damage on impact.

Yavanna stared at the big man defiantly, realising that the brute had no intention of finishing her quickly. The brute was instead looking to play with his prey, and Yavanna knew she would have to seize the opportunity that arose, provided she could last that long. Her enemy stomped the ground hard, sending a trail of rock spikes towards her, forcing her to sidestep quickly. He then charged forward at her, and she ducked the kick that was aimed for her head. A hand thrust followed, and Yavanna moved aside again, but not as far as she should have. As the hand withdrew, the glowing claws were suddenly visible, and they raked along her side, causing searing pain externally to go with the internal pain already present. As Yavanna jumped back, she could feel the poison infiltrating her veins,and her strength began to wane. Though she knew her Eldari gifts would help her recover faster, the task of surviving now became much more difficult.

Deciding on a course of action that would make use of her admittedly-waning strengths, Yavanna went for a defensive holding action, giving herself time to overcome the poison that was crippling her. She activated her Bladewall, summoning five blades identical in appearance to her own weapon. She then activated her weapon's own enchantment, Blade of Purity. Divine energy filled her blade and caused it to glow with a warm golden aura. Yavanna then braced herself into a defensive stance, and prepared to try and counter what came her way next.


Mehxta grinned as his foe began to feel the effects of the Heanta poison that now coursed through his blood. He knew about the fabled Eldari resistance to poisons, so he also knew that the Eldari wouldn't be affected for long. He expected the big man to switch to a defensive stance, and so he was surprised when instead the big man came rushing at him, sword in two hands to make up for the loss of strength. Mehxta noticed the blade blaze with blue energy, just as he ducked and weaved to stay out of the way of it. An opening then presented itself, possibly due to the Eldari having to overexert himself due to the size of that ridiculous sword, and Mehxta moved in. He used the momentum of the third strike to move in rapidly on the Eldari's blindside, and attempted to run the man through with his knife, while using the claws on his free hand to stab at the man's back in a murderous embrace.
"This was a good death. At least you fell to a true Heanta elite!"

Rowan overextended on the third strike, and knew his all out tactic had backfired. The heanta closed on him faster than he could react and slammed into him. He felt the knife slide in to his side, stabbing through him, followed by a surge of incredible pain. The heanta had latched his claws into his back, holding him close and stopping him from escaping. Between the poison and the wound, he felt himself weaken, even with adrenaline coursing through his veins. He grabbed the heanta's hand in a feeble attempt at stopping him from twisting the blade or stabbing him again.

He was surprised, more than anything, that this was how he was going to die. But then it made sense. No one lived forever. He supposed it was a good death, on the battlefield. And then he remembered Yavanna. If he went and died on her, she'd kill him. If she survived, if the two heanta elite didn't simply gang up on her. She might win, but even so the thought of her being killed, that made him angry. Infact so angry, he realised the pain was gone. Strength surged back in to his muscles, as if the poison had worn off early. Rowan's grip on the heanta's hand tightened, harder until the heanta screamed in pain. "What the?! You-"

"I've decided not to die." He said. He heard bones snap, and kicked the heanta hard in the chest, sending him flying, before he hit the ground with a thump. "This is impossible, where is this strength coming from!" Rowan heafted his sword, cold energy swirling around it as he raised it up over his head. "You fought well, Heanta. " Mehxta scrabbled backwards, trying to escape, but Rowan was faster, and closed. He slammed the sword down, unleashing a wave of cold that eviscerated the heanta in an instant. There was nothing left but ice. Job done, Rowan collapsed too.


Gorthyx caught the woman with his claws, and that was all he needed to poison her. She fell back into a defensive stance, forming a barrier of blades around her. "Bah, you think those little blades will stop me?! You're dead, lady." He said, charging forward. He stopped mid charge as he realised Mehxta had landed a Fatal blow on the other Eldari and laughed. "Looks like you'll be meeting your friend in the afterlife, witch." He chuckled at her. And then the Eldari turned it around, and Mehxta was reduced to a pile of icey slush. "You'll pay for that!" He roared at the other Eldari, who promptly collapsed. "Dammit! When I'm done with you, I'll make sure he's dead." He said to the woman. "No more mister nice Gorthyx!" He said, forming a massive axe out of stone. "I'll crush you here and now!" He resumed his charge and lept towards the woman, swinging his massive axe down with enough force to split her down the middle. There would be no escaping, not with heanta venom coursing through her veins.

Mehxta smiled, as he watched the realization dawn across the previously taciturn features of his opponent. The man's body weakened, as the injuries and poison removed his defenses and resolve.
"Nothing personnel, kid."
But it was not the end. Mehxta's eyes widened in shock as the Eldari suddenly grabbed his hand in a vice-like grip. "What the?! You-" but he was cut off by the shattering pain of his hand being crushed, the bones breaking and splintering violently under the pressure. He was then kicked hard in the chest and sent sprawling to the deck. He struggled to get to his feet, the pain of his shattered hand blurring his senses. "This is impossible, where is this strength coming from?! I am a Heanta elite! I can't be overpowered by a low-class Eldari!" But his protestations were for nought, as the Eldari raised his sword, which was now cloaked in a bright icey aura, and brought it down quickly. Mehxta tried to evade, but he was too slow, his last memory being of cold and darkness and death.


Yavanna narrowed her eyes as the big brute scoffed at her hastily assembled defenses. Well, it's not how I would have liked to go, she thought, but at least I... cut his leg? She shook her head as the brute gloated proudly in the distance. I'm bowing out having only cut his legs? Seriously? Yavanna gripped her weapon so tight until her knuckles whitened. I can't leave it here. I need to at least make him limp away or something. Something to her side caught the big man's attention as he stepped forward, and Yavanna chanced a glance and saw that Rowan had been impaled from both sides by claw and knife. Her eyes widened as she fully realized what she was seeing, and as if he could detect her shock, the big brute laughed at her. With that, her decision was made. She called her knife to her right hand, and decided to go for broke. She owed that much to Rowan. As the rage descended upon her, she went for a technique that she had been working on but hadn't yet tested in combat. Given that nothing else had worked so far, Yavanna Elbereth had nothing left to lose.

The big brute advanced, but just before he reached Yavanna, a flash of light shone from Rowan's direction, and she turned to see that Rowan had managed to survive the attack and had destroyed his opponent in a cataclysmic burst of cold energy. Yavanna smiled, before fixing her gaze back on the big brute in front of her, who was now seething. He formed an axe out of stone and swung horizontally, which Yavanna ducked. One of her summoned blades attempted to block it, shattering into pieces. The other blades formed a tight formation, preparing to face another blow together. Yavanna dug into her bag of tricks for her untested technique, named Multi-Vector Assault Mode, and formed a pair of swords that were also identical to her own Silver Swallow. When the big brute stepped in with the downward swing, the Bladewall moved and blocked the blow, stopping it in its tracks. Yavanna heard the surprise in his voice as he uttered "Wat?", and stepped in rapidly. She directed her two magic blades to atack with a series of rapier like thrusts all over the brutes body, while Yavanna bypassed the man's weapon and sliced the backs of the brutes knees at the tendons, forcing him to fall to his knees. The two magic blades sliced cleanly into the brute's neck, even as Yavanna herself sank her own blades into the man's back.

Gouts of blood spurted from the man's neck, coating the blades in blood even as they disappeared into the ether. The man collapsed forward clutching his throat, his denials and protests lost to his severed throat before hitting the ground with a thump. Yavanna exhaled deeply as her fatigue and injuries caught up with her. Looking around, she saw that against the odds, the Eldari had driven off the Heanta-Undari force, a retreat no doubt caused by the loss of their two leading warriors. A pair of Eldari soldiers approached her and offered a hand to assist, but she shrugged them off and pointed to Rowan.
"I'm fine, help Rowan." Yavanna then immediately lost consciousness and collapsed to the ground in a heap.


Yavanna's mind slowly returned to the present, and she smiled fondly as she subconsciously rubbed her ribs that had been badly broken that night.
"Yeah, that was a good fight." She looked to Rowan. "Those guys weren't bad, you know. Though they both talked too much for my liking." She yawned and stretched her arms as she thought about one of the most defining battles of their lives. "You think we going to get our asses beat again? Because it's been a while since I've had a fight that tough. I wouldn't mind another life-or-death struggle against the odds before the likes of you and I are put out to pasture by the new generation." She finished her rations and retrieved her waterskin to wash down the wonderfully dry delicacies. "You know I got asked by one of the other instructors a little while ago if I had made plans for retirement. Bastard."