For a moment, Kire thought she had died. Absolute black, with winds whipping at her soundlessly, and so very cold, like walking through the land of the dead. It was the total opposite of her portals. But no sooner had the thought occurred to her than the darkness disappeared, the stink of the rot of the chapel assaulting her senses after that nothingness left. “Can [i]everyone[/i] in this world do that disappearing trick?” she muttered, shaking her head a bit to get her bearings back. She crouched down and pushed his hand away with her arm. 

He had taken off his cover for the first time, and she spared him a glance, noted in the dim light the scarring on his cheek, before turning away to scan the chapel in case they suddenly appeared in front of them. “So they don’t take prisoners normally?” she asked, ignoring his threat and immediate question. “They do look like the ‘dismember now, ask questions later’ kind.” She fished out the carnelian gems she had found on the corpse earlier. “I assume you found the headless body when you were following me around? Found this, and a rune, on its chest. I found a gem just like it the last time I hunted the blood mage down. Wouldn’t be surprised he’s allied himself with this lot somehow. Or is using them.” 

She paused, catching her breath. While she had used her portals and dragon-strength together on numerous fights before to ensure a quick victory, she’d never encountered anybody who could transport themselves at will before. “What happens when they touch you?”