Not Keldorn!
With increasing horror Peri saw as Imoen, her face deformed into a mask of horror and anguish, transformed into the Slayer, the avatar of their divine sire Peri had been a few times herself. A raw-skinned humanoid corpse, with nothing but murder and madness in its eyes. The last of the creature that was Imoen vanished, and it lunged at her as the gleeful Melissan goaded it.
No one does that to Immy. Not now. Not ever. Not again. She felt uncontrollable rage, the tears of it streaming on her cheeks, and charged at Melissan.
- "No one hurt Immy! No one hurt the Slayer. Or I'll rip your head off!" she heard herself screaming, through dark red haze, sobbing, the rage suffocating her, barely realizing her environment. A sound in the distance. Someone shouting.
- "Peri! Peri! Don't give in! You are supposed to lead us! Don't! No use to attack Melissan, she is in the pool of essence! Fight The Five instead!"
Sarevok tried to establish a contact with his sister, to make her listen. She hacked at Melissan quite uselessly, as the form of Ravager, the even more formidable avatar of Bhaal, was struggling to get in control of her. Imoen's suffering had made her go over the top. Sarevok regretted sharing his old woes with her the night before. Probably that had made her even more susceptible to the attack to her most vulnerable spot, the suffering of the people she loved.
- "Peri! Get a grip! We need instructions, we need YOU! We won't hurt Imoen, I promise!"
He wasn't getting through. The awakened Five were in action. Korgan was fighting Yaga-Shura off, and Illasera was rapidly consuming Edwin's stone skins with her deadly accurate arrows.
- "All right! I will assume command until Peri is all right!" Sarevok shouted. "Keldorn, take down the defenses of Sendai and Abazigal! Korgan and Minsc fight Yaga-Shura! Sarade and Edwin, keep summoning! And no-one, I repeat, no-one hurt the Slayer!"
No-one questioned his orders. He himself leapt at Illasera, worried about the only functioning mage of the group he trusted. The woman was incredibly fast firing her arrows, turning invisible as soon as he approached. At the corner of his eye he kept looking at the Slayer, who at the moment was following him and trying to shred him in pieces. He could dodge the creature rather well, remembering all the time that his little sister was suffering inside the abomination.
Then he saw an even more towering skinless humanoid corpse, summoning bone blades that attacked anyone in their way relentlessly. Oh no, Peri had completely given in. She was the Ravager now. The bone blades, however, seemed to seriously hound Sendai who was starting to fall under the attack of all the summoned creatures. There was a deva, and several magic swords of Mordenkainen. Fire elemental lords, skeleton warriors. Sarevok had a long time ago lost the pace of the battle. He just took the arrows of Illasera, fighting off the Slayer but only parrying so that Imoen would not get hurt. He fell, exhausted by the maneuvers and the arrows, and the beast managed to tear a large wound into his abdomen. He heard a faint cheer, but it faded away, and he realized he was dying. All right then...
Mother, I did well, didn't I? They might live. I didn't get to live very long, but I helped them. I helped Imoen. Please, please let them win the fight. I will not complain about my own demise. Then, some darkness.
Then, he woke up. Still there, floating in space. It was Keldorn, facing him deadly serious and yet pleased.
- "Sarevok, are you alright? Quickly, we need you! We managed to kill Sendai and Illasera, but the fight is still going on! Imoen is back and so is Peri, thanks to you!"
Sarevok just nodded and charged. An experienced warrior, he knew when not to ask questions.
Korgan was staggering, only the Regeneration spell of Sarade's keeping him alive. Sarevok helped him, hacking at Yaga-Shura. From the corner of his eye he could see Peri back in her human form dueling with Abazigal, Irenicus and Imoen taking his magical defences down. Keldorn and Edwin were fighting Balthazar and Sarade just kept healing everyone, Minsc lying unconscious on the ground.
Then, a simultaneous strike from Korgan and Sarevok.
- "Blood and glory! Now ye die!" the dwarf growled, triumphant. And so he did. The angered Melissan entered the fray.
- "You! You are stronger than I thought," she snarled at Peri. "Let it be the final fight then! To the victor go the spoils!"
- "Kill... just kill..." Peri growled, nothing very human in her eyes at the moment.
Korgan and Sarevok immediately leapt at Melissan.
- "Irenicus, some magic please!" Sarevok yelled as his blade bounced off her like it was nothing.
The mage didn't argue, and soon the pair was able to hurt the mad priestess.
Sarevok, knowing this was the battle of his life and oddly enough enjoying himself immensely, heard a cheer. He spared a glance, and saw that Abazigal was down.
- "Damn! Damn you... too strong... must get more essence..."
Melissan, already seriously wounded, retreated into the pool of essence.
- "We will win! We will bring her down!" Sarevok roared. Then he saw Balthazar unleash a kick, and Keldorn, already weakened, was left immobile on the ground.
-"Nooo!" he yelled. "Not Keldorn!"
He ran to the old paladin, lying dead and twisted. Tears brimmed in his eyes, his morale sunk. He never had realized how much he cared for Keldorn, for treating him as not a lost cause when he still wallowed in his madness.
