Kethaia was to busy calling upon Tunare to respond to his question, her hand going to his face to cup it tenderly. Then he felt it, the breath of their Goddess where Thaia touched before its soothing caress traveled through his body..

It flowed through him, soothing, searching and warm. Once it found the damaged areas, it set to work repairing. In a matter of seconds Kavak’s burning pain was replaced, and he was moving far faster.

She smiled impishly. “Feel better now?” Her voice had a hint of a purr to it as she pulled her hand away.

“Much. I knew there was a reason why I allowed you to tag along.” Kavak said teasingly, watching her eyes light up with that fire he enjoyed to see from her. Before she could respond, he moved saying. “Well were not under attack yet … so they might not have heard.”

“Of course, my friend,” the robed Teir’Dal replied in an oily tone. “If you would show us the way?”

“After you. I don’t trust you behind me,” Kavak barred his orcish fangs then spit on the ground in front of the Teir’Dal. The one in mail quivered with rage at the insult, but his robed companion placed a hand on his arm.

“Of course centurion, of course,” the wizard smiled. He slid past and the moment his back was turned Kavak acted. The narrow hallway prevented sword work, so he drew his belt knife and rammed it into the man’s kidney. Wrenching it free with a twist he used his other hand to slam the man’s head into the stone wall with a wet thump. The wizard collapsed in a heap.

The second Teir’Dal moved with the speed of a viper. One moment his mace was belted at his side, and the next it was in his hand as if he’d simply not bothered with the intervening space. He lashed out with it in a silver blur, and Kavak’s shoulder shattered under the weight of the heavy weapon. He grunted, but surpressed the agonized scream that threatened to rip its way free.

“I don’t know who you are, but you’ve ruined months of work. You’ll suffer before you die,” The Teir’Dal’s face was a mask of rage, and Kavak felt a moment’s despair. His opponent was faster and stronger than he. Worse, he was small enough to capitalize on the close quarters while Kavak had to rely on his dagger.

Of course he also had Thaia. The warden ripped her scimitar from its sheath in one smooth motion as she dropped to her knees. She darted forward shoving the blade between Kavak’s legs, and catching the Teir’Dal across the thigh with a wicked gash. The man backpedaled for room, but Kavak wasn’t letting the bastard get away.

He leapt on the man and the pair crashed to the heavy stone. They wrestled for control, but now Kavak had the advantage. He didn’t need to win, only slow the man long enough for Thaia to take a shot. Sure enough the warden waited for an opening, and then darted forward to bury her blade in the Teir’Dal’s chest. Black blood leaked from his mouth and his eyes glittered hatefully, until the light left them forever.

“We’d best get out of this hallway quickly,” Kavak panted as he stumbled to his feet. “Think they heard us?”

“Please, calm yourself centurion” Thaia heard the male say, her breathing steady and calm for one who was in a pickle.

When one of them peered curiously at her, Thaia willed herself to not panic, darting a glance to Kavak waiting for his cue. But all he did was grunt like those smelly orcs did.

Keeping her head positioned right, to keep the shadows hiding her face still Thaia offered a silent prayer to Tunare. Then whispered one for Kavak as well. She knew Kavak was quick on his feet as well as with his mind. She had faith in his ability to get them out of this.

She hoped anyways.

“Then you are not looking deeply enough,” a deeper voice snapped. The footsteps grew louder as they thumped down the hall towards Kavak and Thaia. “The orcs numbers are limitless, and they will continue to fight long after any one else would have given up. All you need do is direct them at Kelethin, and they will distract our enemies long enough to do what must be done.”

Tunare’s bloody bosom there was nowhere to hide. To the south was the corridor the men were approaching from, and to the north lay a wide oaken door that would make enough noise to wake the dead should they open it. How could they get out of this?

“Play along,” Kavak ripped his cloak from his shoulders and draped it over Thaia. He pulled the emerald hood up high enough to cover her face, and then stepped boldly in front of her. Dipping his hand into his belt pouch he fumbled for the petrified orc eye he’d brought for just such an emergency. Crushing a bit of bone between two fingers he murmured an incantation, and the world shifted around him.

Suddenly he was much shorter and a good deal stockier. To most he would appear to be an orc centurion. He’d completed the transformation just in time, because the speakers rounded the corner and stopped as they saw Kavak and Thaia.

“What are you doing in our citadel, elf?” Kavak boomed in his best imitation of an orc. Evidently it was convincing because the figures stopped.

Both had the violet skin typical of Teir’Dal, but the similarity between them ended there. The taller wore night black robes, and had a river of ivory hair cascading loosely around delicate shoulders. His companion was half a hand shorter, and the more dangerous of the two in Kavak’s estimation. He wore a coat of blackened iron rings with a buckler fixed to one hand, with the other resting loosely on the hilt of a mace. Both had the black and red sigils of the Thexian order emblazoned on their chests. What were the Thexian’s doing in crushbone?

“Please, calm yourself centurion,” the taller man glided forward with an oily smile. “We’ve been dispatched to meet with your leader, and he is expecting us. In fact, if you’d like you may lead us there.” The man darted curious glances at Thaia, and seemed to will the shadows away so he could see her face under the scowl.

Kavak was torn with indecision. Should they kill the pair or play along?

Thaia pressed close to the wall, giving Kavak as much room needed, his large imposing frame drawing an admiring look or two from her. Around a bend, up the hall then he holds his hand out motioning for her stand still. She did though her eyes darted back down to his armored rear once more.

“Two guards up ahead, they seem to be talking to each other ..Thaia are you listening to me.” Kavak asked in a soft whisper, his expression worried, maybe that last encounter with the guards in the main entry way of the keep had caused more harm then good. He looked at her, knowing exactly where her gaze was and where it rested now since he turned to face her a bit.

She blinked, her wayward thoughts of metal, flesh and heat sizzled then vanished as she looked up to his face saying. “Oh .. two guards was it? .. shall I distract again like outside?” Her bright green gaze shimmering with excitement at the prospect of being the decoy again.

He shook his head at her and muttered. “No, we are going to do this like in the entrance way.” Kavak said as he turned, missing Thaia’s pout.

“Fine” She grumbled, moving up behind him only to grab his arm when he went to stride forward. “Wait I hear something, foot steps coming back the way we came” He instantly stepped in front of her and pushed her to the wall, shielding her with his body.

“You know, if you wanted me against the wall .. you only had to ask” She purred, the feel of her breath tickling his neck as the footsteps grew closer.