Magus stumbled backwards, eyes fixed on the archer as the latter screamed and collapsed to the ground. The aura returned to its multicoloured hue and shrunk to its previous size, surrounding him. The merest desire to get him out of the way, and it had happened. How had he done it?

"[i]Oh Nine Divines![/i]" A woman's voice screamed. "[i]What [/i]is[i] this creature!?[/i]"

[i]Creature?[/i] Turning around, he saw that she was wearing a blue robe. She had a large brow, but everything else about her looked the same fuzzy shade of grey. There really had to be something wrong with his eyes. Magus reached up to rub them, and found they were dry and faceted...

Before he could do anything, she raised her hands, moved them in a circle and said something. He didn't know the language, but he knew the motions people with innate magic used to cast spells. 

He dodged, aura spiking outwards, just as the woman threw the flames that appeared in her hands at him. The fireball whistled past, only barely missing him. The fabric on his sleeve smoked slightly. 

"Stop! I mean you no harm!" Surely she would know he wasn't a creature if he could speak. The light around him fluttered rapidly, and he took a deep breath, willing it to calm. It dimmed and settled somewhat, to his relief.

The sounds of a battle approached. More of the stranger-looking armoured beings ran into view, in hot pursuit by a wolf and a man who looked the very image of a barbarian. As Magus watched, the wolf changed into a man and pulled out a bow, while the barbarian fired ice beams at the soldiers, trapping them. "Get over here and help us!" The man who had been a wolf earlier shouted. Another soldier charged at him, and he shot it down with his bow. 

There were [i]more?[/i] His aura brightened considerably, and he stopped himself. Another flare would definitely draw more of them in. 

"How many of them are there? And who are you?" He yelled back. Those two were definitely good, but he doubted even all of them together could face an entire battalion. Better to distract and scatter the soldiers. The light had complied in blinding the archer: would it bend further to his will?

The barbarian would do nicely to scare them. He tried shaping the light; it took on a vaguely humanoid form but that was all. 

Then again, he could still hope it would blind them. He released the light in the direction that soldier had come, and the humanoid form sped forwards.