As the dwarven tinkerer began to dismantle the veilfire piping her screwdriver slipped in her hand, catching on the ancient metal tubing and piercing it through. Leaping back Etta was just in time to avoid setting herself ablaze as a jet of green fire shot across the tunnel, almost catching Lian from behind.

Suddenly ahead of them in the darkness a pack of deepstalkers, five or six in number, who had been carefully sneaking closer to the explorers under cover of the shadows were lit up by the bright green flare, their gleaming under the magical illumination. Giving a loud hiss the beasts leapt forwards to attack the advanced party.

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Meanwhile, on the surface the wolves were drawing closer to the group of humans, carefully skulking through the undergrowth as they stalked the outlying guards. With over a dozen in their pack the wolves usually struggled to feed themselves on the sparse game they could catch beneath the ancient trees, but today they'd been presented with an entire buffet of meat to choose from.

Closing within a few feet of the absentminded militiaman the alpha took a de4ep breath, tasting the flavour of the man's sweat on the breeze before pouncing forwards. Hearing the snort of air the guard turned, raising his crossbow, but he was too late. As the wolf's jaws closed around his throat all the man could do was cry out in shameful agony.

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Hearing the cry Martin tossed his pipe aside, his sword and shield in hand before the ivory bowl had hit the floor. [color=00aeef]"You, you and you, with me!"[/color] He called out, gesturing to three of the party members at random as he quickly made his way over in the direction of the scream, not even bothering to note who it was her'd asked to follow him.

As he approached the brushline Martin slowed his pace, eyes darting over the bushes as he tried to pierce their dense cover to see what was happening. Just as he did the wolf leap up out at him, barely giving the warrior time to raise his shield and batter the beast aside as the pack descended on the party.

[center][img]http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs25/f/2008/120/a/f/Wolfpack_attack_by_jel.jpg[/img][/center]
[color=00aeef]"[b]To Arms! To Arms![/b]"[/color] Martin called out as he was knocked back by the force of the impact, stumbling for a second before turning to face the beast. Shifting his fingers Martin gripped his sword more tightly before swinging it down hard towards the rabid animal, while all around him the pack began to rip into the militia with tooth and claw. At the last moment the beast he was facing darted aside, and rather than slicing into the wolf's neck as he'd planned Martin watched as his blade cut a long, shallow bloody gash in the hound's shoulder.

The yelp quickly turned into an angry growl as the beast began to pace around Martin, slowly trying to work its way towards the soldier's flank. Narrowing his eyes Martin immediately recognised what the pack hunter was doing and turning away he swung his sword up high, catching the second beast across the underbelly as it tried to leap at Martin from out of the forest cover.

[color=00aeef]"[b]For fuck's sake, you fucking maggots,[/b]"[/color] Martin called out, realising he'd been spending far too much time with Fredrick over the last couple of days, [color=00aeef]"[b][i]Fight[/i], Maker damn you![/b]"[/color]