Jeanne quickly wrapped the strip around her forearm and shook her sleeve back over it. Keeping the dagger in hand, she made her way back into the main square to talk to the prince and to make sure her siblings were still alive. As she stepped out the first thing she noticed was the amount of worgen corpses laying around. The second thing was that the number still on the streets hasn't dropped one bit.
Shoving down a sudden prang of hopelessness, she made a beeline towards the still mounted Liam and his guards, to which Cerdic seemed to have joined with.
"Joan!" Cerdic called, relief and desperation clear in his voice, "Thank the Light! You're okay!"
She bit down the urge to correct him and instead scoffed as she finished off the worgen he was battling with a spell. "Of course I'm alright! It takes more than a few manky worgen to kill me!"
The older man gave her a look as he brushed his hair out of his eyes, smearing gore all over his face. Prince Liam glanced between the two and cleared his throat, drawing their attention.
"It's time for you two to evacuate. You two have served me well and I thank you, truly. Go to the military district with the other civilians and check in with Miss. Armstead. I need you to check on the other evacuees while my guards and I cover their retreat."
"But," Jeanne started, stepping towards the prince but was cut off by a sharp shake of his head.
"That is an order, Lady Jeanne! I will meet up with you and your brothers at a later time. Go!"
Chastised, Jeanne bowed her head for a moment then returned his gaze, stubbornness clear within her emerald ones. She took a casting stance and waved glowing hands at him, letting her magic heal him as best as she possibly could. His posture straightened a bit as his minor injuries closed and gave her a grateful grin.
"You better, dammit," she shot back, fighting a sudden rise of dizziness upon the completion of the spell.
With that, she and Cerdic spun and dashed down the moonlit streets, dodging fighting pairs of guards and worgen as they went. There were a few times that the siblings had to defend themselves or each other from a stray worgen or two.
"Good hit!" Cerdic called from over his shoulder as a bolt of green energy sailed over his shoulder and struck the worgen square in the chest, stunning it long enough for him to deal the killing blow. "Next time not so close to my head!"
"Oh, stop being a prat! It was only a six inches away!" she shot back, struggling to hide the constant dizziness with her normal saucy attitude.
Cerdic gave her a concerned look but mentally shrugged it off, blaming it on weariness. "Just hold on a bit longer, Sister. We're almost there and you'll have a chance to rest."
Jeanne just nodded in agreement; it was best not to let on that she was truly not feeling her best and save her a long infuriating lecture. She and Cerdic found the stairs leading down and descended them. Cerdic greeted the dark haired woman as Jeanne struggled to focus through the fog in her mind.
"Lady Jeanne," Gwen's voice cutting through the fog, "Glad to see you're still standing."
Jeanne forced an affronted look on her face and replied, "You expected me to fall to these mongrels? Not bleeding likely!"
The woman chuckled darkly and shifted her grip on the rifle she carried, "No, I didn't think so. However, there are a hell of a lot of these beasts to cut through, even for you."
Gwen gave the red-head a measured look and continued, "There was someone asking about you. I believe it's that harvest-witch, Celestine; she sounded pretty worried. Best hurry up; we need our best out worgen-smashing after you're done conversing with nature."
Jeanne bit back a nasty reply and simply nodded, moving past the woman as fast as she could without being impolite. She scanned the area and quickly found her master kneeling beside a wounded man, hands glowing a bright green that only a healing spell could produce. She strode over to the witch, who had glanced up hearing footsteps approaching.
"Joan!" she cried, a broad, relieved smile lighting up her weary face, "We are indeed blessed today! I was worried that you wouldn't make it!"
"Well, here I am," Jeanne replied, smiling despite her current condition, "Takes more than a few worgen to down me."
The older woman merely smiled and finished up her current charge, standing and brushing off her robe. Celestine gave the younger woman a look over, a frown replacing her relieved smile.
"You don't feel so good, child," she said after a moment, taking a casting stance and waving glowing hands over the red-head, "Hold still."
Jeanne sighed and let her master do her work, knowing better than to interrupt her when she has her mind made up. Celestine's hands paused when they reached her wounded arm and the witch's brow furrowed as she focused her power to heal that one part.
"You've been bit," she muttered, her face drawing tight with worry, "And it does not want to close."
The older woman stepped back and gave Jeanne a hard stare, making her shift uncomfortably. "Are you feeling well? Anything feel amiss since you've been bitten?"
"I'm—", Jeanne started to lie, but changed her mind last minute at the look her master gave her, "I-I've been rather dizzy, honestly. Nothing I can't handle though."
"I see." Celestine gave her another measuring look and gestured over the gathered wounded and her students still tending to them. "That is the same answer I received from those still conscious when we recovered them. Like your bite, theirs won't close as well. I just hope the wounds won't get infected…"
"Yeah…" Jeanne answered, shaking her head to try and clear out some of the fog collected in there, "Is there anything you need me to do while I'm here?"
Celestine's lips twitched in a smile as she regarded the young woman in front of her, "Well, healing the wounded is out for you; your healing skills are barely passable. I suppose you take that Moonfire spell you recently learned and kill more worgen. Come back when you've culled some."
Jeanne hid a grin and mockingly saluted, rushing past her fellow students and jumping back into the fray in time to save Ammon from getting his neck torn out.
"You have the most impeccable timing Joan," he deadpanned, shoving the smoldering carcass off of him and clambering to his feet.
"I try," she shot back as she knocked another worgen off of a roof with a bolt of magic, "Do try and be more careful this time, dear brother. I won't always be there to save your sorry arse."
"Bitch," Ammon spat, waiting for the worgen to be in range before sticking him in between the eyes with a knife, "That one took me by surprise."
"Suuure it did." Another worgen charged at the twins only to fall flat on his face with two knives in his throat. "You need to teach me how you do that."
"Believe it or not, I can take care of myself." The bright light of lunar fire lit up the area, cooking the entrapped worgen in a flash. "Maybe after we kick these flea-bitten runts out of our city. Cerdic'll have my head, you know."
"Don't care. I can do whatever the hell I want." Another worgen went down in a combination of lunar fire and a slit throat, courtesy of the twins. "Nice shot!"
Ammon grinned darkly as he wiped his blade on the worgen's filthy and tattered trousers. "You too Joan. I just wish Cerd could see past his view of women and see how much you've grown."
Jeanne snorted and took a long draw of lukewarm water from her bag, feeling her magic reserves swell back up. "I doubt he ever will. I've already saved his life several times tonight and he still gives me that stubborn look whenever I bring it up."
Ammon hummed and looked around at the sound of fighting farther back. Spotting a figure in shining armour fighting off a group of worgen alone, he sighed and rolled his shoulders. "Looks like that tosser needs us now. Let's assist him before he gets himself killed."
Jeanne nodded and followed Ammon at a brisk jog, stopping a few yards from the fight to quickly cast as Ammon charged in, knives flying.
"Ammon! Joan!" Cerdic gasped as he parried a slash of worgen claws with his sword, "So glad to see you! Got ambushed when I went to pull this bugger."
"We can see that!" Jeanne sniped, shooting a ball of energy at that particular worgen, "You're supposed to be the warrior! You should know how to pull by now!"
"Stuff it," Cerdic shot back, cleaving the head off of the worgen with a quick flash of silver, "You shouldn't even be out here!"
"Both of you stuff it!" Ammon growled, burying a dagger into his worgen's chest and slicing through his neck with the other hand, "Both you wankers are making my head pound!"
"Arse!" Jeanne glared at him and shot him healing spell, taking her twin by surprise. "Better?"
"Much. Thanks."
"Don't mention it." Jeanne sighed in relief as she dropped her casting stance and surveyed the bloody mess they've made. "Whelp, I do believe this will satisfy Celestine. You tossers coming?"
Two choruses of 'yeah' were heard as she spun on her heel, stumbling slightly as her dizziness returned with a vengeance.
"You okay?" She heard Ammon ask quietly at her elbow, startling her.
She entertained the thought of lying to him for a second or two before dismissing it and replying, "Got bit a little while back. Celestine said that it won't heal for some reason."
A furrowed brow was the only answer she got as the three came up on the group of trainers. Faces she didn't recognize looked up at her as she strode past the group of wounded and hailed Celestine. "Master, I've returned."
Celestine gave the young woman a look over and nodded, wrinkling her nose slightly. "I see that. You've killed more than your fair share I would think."
Jeanne glanced down at herself and grimaced at the fresh blood soaking into her clothes. "Can't be helped. It's dirty work trying to push back this invasion."
"Yes, yes it is." Celestine sighed and glanced up at the large full moon hanging above their heads, "It's time for us to join the survivors, I'd think. I've heard some of the wounded mention that King Greymane is just south of here with his royal guard. We should go and seek safety in numbers."
Jeanne saluted and made to obey before catching sight of the many wounded still on the ground. She turned back to the older woman with the question on her lips before getting turned away.
"There's more than enough hands to transport them. Go and aid the King. We will catch up."
Hesitating a moment more, Jeanne then nodded and joined her brothers, who were waiting for her to be dismissed before moving ahead. She and her brothers moved at a steady pace, keeping a sharp eye out for any attacking worgen. Amazingly, they encountered no resistance the entire way and found themselves back in the King's presence.
"Baron Delroy," the king greeted with a grim nod of his head, ignoring Lord Godfrey's disbelieving huff, "I see you and your siblings have survived. Light bless us all."
"We are blessed to have survived intact," Cerdic agreed, bowing low to the King and giving Lord Godfrey a shorter bow, "How may we be of service to you?"
The king grew silent and turned towards the hulking stone building a few yards in front of them. He watched the guards fight the surrounding worgen for a few moments before nodding sharply and turning back to the siblings.
"I need you three to rescue Lord Darius Crowley from the prison."
"Crowley?" Cerdic asked, slightly aghast, "Why? He's been locked up for a reason!"
"I have to share the Baron's sentiments, Sire," Lord Godfrey muttered, distaste clear in his voice.
King Greymane ignored him and continued, "I understand your sentiment Cerdic, trust me. Regardless... Crowley is exactly the type of person we need now more than ever. Enter Stoneward Prison and ask Captain Broderick about Crowley's whereabouts. I can't trust my own men not to rescue him without some kind of revenge for the suffering he's—we've—caused."
Cerdic exhaled as he mulled it over, glancing at the younger two for any kind of input. Jeanne pursed her lips and nodded her assent, Ammon following shortly after.
"We'll do it. For the sake of Gilneas," Cerdic intoned solemnly, nodding his head as he spoke.
"Thank you," King Greymane stated, giving them a nod of appreciation, "Whenever you're ready, Baron Delroy."
Before Cerdic had the chance to turn and ask the other two if they were ready, Lord Godfrey cleared his throat to get their attention.
Godfrey gave the king a dubious look before turning to them fully, his sneer deepening at the sight of the young nobles.
"I couldn't care less if King Greymane wants you three to risk your lives for a traitor. Do me a favor and kill these cursed fleabags while you're out there. Do something useful for once."
Jeanne opened her mouth to tell the Lord where to shove his request before being cut off by Cerdic. "Of course we will. Come Jeanne. Ammon."
