[right][h3]The Old Priory[/h3][/right]

Seeing the goblins fall, Tayronus takes out a piece of cured leather from his pack and begins chanting another incantation, causing it to levitate within a whirl of arcane energy. Grabbing the leather, he slammed it on his chest and a flow of arcane covered his body, strangely looking like armour before it disappeared.

Then, putting a hand on one of the guard's shoulder, he said, "I'll take another look inside the priory," then jumped back into Rake's mind as he made his towards the long hall to the other building.

Inside, the two goblins had led the woman to the altar, leaning her over it. An argument broke about between the two goblin underlings, and as their crossbow-armed leader attempted to reconcile them, the shouting escalated into what sounded like Or'cat threats and curses.

Rake and Tayronus watched the scene for a few more seconds. "I wonder if I can get the goblins to kill each other," Rake said with a small snigger.

"What do you mean?" Tayronus asked.

Suddenly, Rake changed forms from a spider to an imp and flew down to the one arguing with the leader. "He means to kill you," he said in common, "he summoned me, a demon, to bring ruin to you all once this mess is done!" Rake then appeared suddenly beside the goblin he was speaking to and flared his wings.

The goblins blinked, considering the imp. They looked to each other, and the leader spoke in stilted, but capable, Adean. "Did Valeerya send you to make bad jokes or check on our progress, imp? Tell her we are almost done, she will not have to wait long," he growled, and then switched back to Or'cat. He barked an order at the two goblins, who acquiesced and bent the woman over the altar, pressing her face to the white marble surface. 

Suddenly, there was a bang on the door, and the goblins looked up.

Soon after Tayronus had left for his familiar's mind again, Vanguard picked up the tiefling's vacant body and slung it over his shoulder. "Advance," Vanguard said before leading the way into the vestibule. 

Once he reached the barred door, Vanguard placed Tayronus down next to it and turned to those who had followed him in. "As this place has been abandoned for so long, the door will be weak from a lack of proper maintenance," Vanguard stated. "If we throw our combined strength against the door, it should break with relative ease." Vanguard put away his crossbow and pulled out his maul. "Lives are at stake," Vanguard said, "bring down this door!"

Striding up to join the warforged in his attempt at battering the portal open, Naraug took but a moment to retrieve his somewhat charred javelin from the goblin's corpse, grumbling something about spits and fires in Or'cat. The state of the haft was quickly forgotten, though, as the orc replaced it behind his back and hoisted his warhammer. He nodded at Vanguard - "With ya." - as he readied a concerted blow.

With that said, Vanguard and Naraug threw his shoulder against the barricaded double doors. The beam across the inside doors creaked mightily. And then, with a second bang, the wooden beam broke and doors swung inward, revealing the heroic adventurers, ready to rescue the captured citizens.

As soon as they were in, they felt tremors under them. Four chandeliers above swung with the rocking, and the wooden pews creaked. While not particularly dangerous to the combatants, the straggling tiefling had certainly set the mood. Unfortunately this did not distract the goblin captain for less than a moment, and as Vanguard and Naraug led the charge down the church's central aisle, he aimed his crossbow and took a shot.  

"CHARGE!" Vanguard bellowed, charging the goblin archer at the end of the aisle and swinging at it with his maul. A crossbow bolt skkippd off his shoulder, and the goblin captain cursed aloud as the bolt failed to pierce the warforged's armor. The doors had scarcely come to rest when Naraug rushed through the portal, howling something unclear, but certainly loud and dire-sounding. Hammer and shield in hand, he bore down upon the nearest sword-wielding goblin and swung his weapon at it without breaking stride.

Seeing that his plan had failed and the combat had begun, Rake hissed in frustration. "You did what you could, now get back," Tayronus said telepathically. Rake flew back to him and landed on his shoulder. Something snapped, and Tayronus was in his own mind again, somehow on the floor in front of the priory. He stood and took a few steps back.

Vanguard and Naraug reached their targets, swinging their weapons. The swordgoblin was ready for them, and braced himself to engage, however, and with a mighty swing of his shield caught the warhammer on its sturdy wooden frame and turned it aside. As Naraug felt the warhammer driven into the ground, he knew he was open. He attempted to bring his shield to bear, but too late. The goblin swung the scimitar upward, the cruel iron raking against the interlinked chains of the half-orc's armor [color=ed1c24](-6)[/color]. Lightning lept down the the blade as it connected, and the goblin took a shock. Even so, he stood fast, dangerous, and proved capable of killing.

Vanguard, meanwhile, was luckier. The bowgoblin was nimble, but even as the maul's head found the priory floor, cracking the stone with the strength of the swing, it lingered too close. Vanguard, with swift ferocity, found the side of the goblin's head with his maul as he returned to his readied stance. 

The bowgoblin, bloodied but hardly dead, moved with swift agility, backed up a few feet from the warforged, bow in hand. As he moved, he lined up a shot and loosed an arrow, but again, the warforged's armor held. Behind the altar, the goblin on the left readied an arrow, aimed directly at the warforged's head. An arrow found his throat. The bow fell from his hand and he clutched his wound before collapsing to the floor, gurgling. Harold had slid to the right hand side of the party taking up position behind one of the pews, knocked an arrow, and found his kill.

The woman screamed, and the swordgoblin to her right bolted for the door at the end. The moon elf stood to his feet, attempting to get in the way, but the swordgoblin thrust his blade through the elf's stomach and went for the door.

"Tag him!" Harrad shouted to his men. Before taking the door, Harrad had stationed two of his men, spears and shields ready, outside the outer doors to the church, ready to repel enemies, while Harrad and his two crossbowmen supported the party. The goblin released his grip on the door handle and took cover behind his shield. Crossbow bolts rained on him, two embedding themselves in his shield, but he remained alive and unbloodied. 

The fight raged on.