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Helspar's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when he saw what the human woman did. He had a creeping suspicion that she was skilled in dark magic when she saved him, and now she didn't even bother hiding it. Helspar's jaw dropped, and the arrow he prepared nearly did the same, as the absolutely foul skeleton ran past him, and crashed straight into a (most likely) bad guy. At least they're on the same side, right? Even so, letting her stand behind him with a sword felt a lot less appealing now.

"You did something, alright!" Helspar said nervously. The diminutive human just took out what looked like the cult leader, and spared the carriage driver from the knife. However, the remaining five people in the cavern weren't as happy as the carriage driver.

"Interlopers! The captives have escaped!" The figure immediately behind the dagger-wielding man shouted. This strange individual wore long robes with intricately etched patterns, and in their hands was a staff that looked like a knotty piece of wood with a glowing mushroom on top. "Kill them while I finish the ritual."

"Yeah, I think they're angry about the, uh, smell!" Helspar blurted out, and suddenly aware of the skeleton's putrid scent. "Do you have to make skeletons smell like rotten eggs?"

Four people approached Helspar and his necromancer comrade, all of whom clad in Bomser style leather and bone armor, and wielded very mean looking melee weapons. However, what concerned Helspar was the mage behind them. Said mage raised the mushroom staff, and it lit up as energy gathered from sigils around the cavern floor. Helspar knew this was his target; always interrupt the scary wizard casting the scary ritual.

Taking the best aim he could muster, Helspar let loose an overdrawn arrow at the mage. Instead of hitting flesh target, the arrow skewed slightly and knocked the mushroom staff out of the mage's hands. Still, energy stopped channeling from the sigils, and the mage was momentarily confused.

At the same time, the four melee enemies were closing in fast. At this distance, they smelled as repulsive as the exploding skeleton. They looked like Bosmers to Helspar, and from what Helspar heard about their lifestyle, it must be their poor sanitation. They had the numerical advantage, but there's enough room and obstacles in the cavern for him to lead them on a wild guar chase. Kiting, as the Argonian shield-bearers called it. It was a terrible idea; Helspar didn't have a big shield and thick armor, but he would rather face four blades than whatever magic the mage conjured.

"You can handle the mage, and free the carriage driver, too!" Helspar informed his ally. He saw how nervous the human woman was with her sword, but he himself was also shaking with fear. Nothing they're doing was inspiring confidence, but it was too late to turn back. "I'll keep the rest distracted, for as long as I can..."

Stepping directly into the cavern, Helspar casted magelight instead of reaching for another arrow. The shining light got his foes' attention, and the suddenly brightness got them to briefly stop their attacks. Helspar then peeled off to the left. Three out four followed him, while the last one focused on the human woman. Knowing it was the best he could do, he reach for his quiver again. There was only time for one quick shot before he had to dodge, and Helspar's arrow struck an enemy in the shoulder, pinning them to a nearby boulder.

Angry battle cries and the slashing of blades followed Helspar. He dashed behind a rock pillar, ducked beneath a flaming brazier and ran through a glowing sigil on the ground. The sigil lit up when Helspar stepped on it, and he could hear the fizz of magicka flaring up. The angry Bosmers weren't far behind, though Helspar had gotten enough distance for another shot. This time, he went for the brazier.

The brazier tumbled over right as a Bosmer went by. It fell on the Bosmer and lit the poor elf on fire. Just one more; maybe Helspar could do this after all! All he needed was another arrow and...the quiver was empty!

"Not again!" Helspar complained out loud. His enemy, probably the one of the biggest Bosmer ever, taller than Helspar himself, literally brought down the axe.

Helspar had one thing to put between his head and the axe, his bow. Metal collided against wood, Helspar's bow held and his arms went numb from the impact. The Bosmer axe murderer swung again, and Helspar blocked again. The second strike cut Helspar's bow clean in half, though the axe itself missed the Dunmer. Helspar reeled, he collapsed onto his knees, the Bosmer raised his axe for the third time, and Helspar threw whatever dirt he could grab into the Bosmer's face.

It was effective, the Bosmer was blinded and missed. This would be the moment for Helspar to escape, but he didn't. He could not leave his newfound ally, necromancer or not, to fate, like he had done with Gnarl-Braids. Instead, he mustered every last bit of stamina left in him and charged into Bosmer. Helspar intended to tackle his foe and disarm him, but the Bosmer was swinging his axe wildly. So Helspar could only push the Bosmer into a sigil.

The sigil, however, was having none of it. It glowed brighter than ever as electricity danced. The Bosmer was caught in the midst and began convulsing, which prompted Helspar to step back and shield his eyes. Surely enough, an explosion occurred. The Bosmer and sigil were no more, leaving only a crater in their place.

Only then did Helspar realize a wide gash had been opened on his side. The Bosmer's axe cut through Helspar's jacket and flesh during their tussle earlier, leaving a steady trickle of blood in its wake. He desperately ripped off fabric from his sleeves to cover the gash, while praying his guts weren't spilling out.

"Hey, hey! Are you still there?" Helspar called out for the human woman. The cavern was lot darker with one less brazier and sigil.
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