The bridge had been necessary before all of this. The whole of Izalith proper could get very congested by the crowds of its denizens. It provided a new path, high above the usual thoroughfare, to both add convenience and the chance for a stunning view over a large portion of Izalith.
Not that there was much to see now.
Especially not when plummeting to the rubble-strewn cobblestones more than a thousand feet below.
As Ciaran fell, she habitually stretched her limbs out into a spread-eagle position in an attempt to slow her fall, the braid on her mask whipping upwards in the air as she sheathed her tracers to keep them from being wrenched away by the wind.
She was already realizing her grim odds of nicely meeting the approaching ground when a screeching sound pierced the air. She had a split second to see a pale, winged shape hurtling towards her before it struck, and sent her spinning haphazardly through the air.
Up was down, down was up, and she couldn't seem to regain her balance to fend the demons off as she tumbled. She bounced off of the side of a building and out into open air again, slamming into one of the batwing demons and taking it by surprise. She lashed out with a kick to its narrow throat and heard a crack.
The other demons must have lacked the ferocity of their kin, as they shied away at the realization that their prey could fight back. Ciaran almost wished they would stay so she could have some reference of what was up and down.
Not to mention she could have used some wings to spare her from the street below.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Artorias had been big all of his life. As such he hadn't really had much to fear from heights, especially not in his usual humble settings.
Of course that had changed once he had gotten to Anor Londo.
The entire city was built atop a mountain for Gwyn's sake.
He had still never had any experience with falling a significant height, however, and knew little about how to react. Seeing Ciaran fan herself out, he tried to follow suit, but was much heavier and had started off in a spin from the bridge.
He was still able to make out what happened to her though, as the demons swooped at her again and again. He tried swiping at them with his sword, but it did nothing for him in the air but throw him into more of a spin.
He couldn't see very much, but he was sure their final destination was coming up shortly.
"Gwyn help me."
Artorias managed to sheath his sword with some difficulty, it wasn't going to save him here, and frantically tried to figure something out. He was falling next to a tall rock face, but it was too smooth and going by too fast to stop him from falling. If he jammed his sword into it, he could probably bring himself to a halt, but Ciaran would keep falling.
It might be able to redirect him though…
He waited until his spin brought him closer to the wall, losing precious seconds…
He slammed his legs out to their full length, punching divots into the rock face with the force of the motion. This propelled him out farther into the open air, where Ciaran deftly dispatched one of the demons with a well-placed kick.
He was traveling quickly, still falling, but shooting horizontal as well. It looked like he might miss his target…
He stretched out his arm and barely hooked an index finger around her belt, drawing her within his reach.
"Hold on!"
He had barely gotten the warning out of his mouth when they slammed into the remains of a small building, his body and shield utterly destroying the upper floor upon impact.
Things went blissfully quiet and dark.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Ciaran blinked awake what felt like an hour later.
Things were mostly dark, and she was in some kind of enclosed space…
The blurry memory of what had brought her here jumped back into her mind, as well as what had cushioned her fall.
"Artorias!"
She pushed at the nearest surface, and it fell away limply, revealing itself as his right arm.
She rolled over, trying to get her bearings after the jarring impact, and found Artorias beneath her. He was sprawled out over what was left of the building's stone foundations, helmet lying nearby with a sizeable dent in it.
"Oh no."
She brushed a few timbers away from his face and pulled his hood back. "Artorias! Are you alright?" When there was no response, she checked his pulse. It was there, if a little slow. He was breathing, she thought, but the pattern was odd…
A wheezing laugh came from his mouth.
"I-I'm fine. I'm fine. Always l-looking for excuses to put you-your hands on me."
"Artorias!" She slammed her fists down on his chest.
"Oof! Okay, I know, that-that was a bad one. Honestly, I think-I think I'm good." He lifted a hand to his head to dab at a bloody spot. "I-I just hit m-my head, nothing-nothing too important." He stared at his hand, brow furrowing while he blinked rapidly. "Uh, actually, I can't see straight at all."
"Oh, Gwyn. Hold still for a moment."
She tentatively combed his hair away from the wound to get a better view, and let out a little groan. "Oh…Artorias, don't panic, alright?"
He didn't move, but his eyes swiveled up to look at her in a concerned, but unfocused fashion. "Why?"
"I'm no cleric, but I'm pretty sure you've fractured your skull." She waved her hand in front of his face. "Still blurry?"
His eyes seemed to have a hard time tracking her hand. He rubbed at them. "Yeah…this is bad."
As if they had been waiting for such an opportunity, the demons descended.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Above, things were not going well.
The rest of the group had been swarmed almost immediately after the collapse. The demons pressed harder than ever, and in the confusion caused in the collapse, they had taken several lives. Three silver knights lay dead on the stones, another thrown over the side with a few civilians. As it was, the remainder were formed up in a circle around the rest against the approaching horde.
Gough, as the last Knight standing, had to resort to swinging his massive bow like a club. He was not exactly made for speed, however, and was at a disadvantage against the trio of Centipede demons that had assaulted him.
One of them leapt into the air, throwing itself at him. He batted them over the side of the bridge with a swing of his bow, the blow leaving him open to the second one to leap onto him. It sank its many teeth into his arm. The third one bull rushed him, knocking him to the ground.
Gough stared up at the looming maw of the demon through the bars of his helmet as it bore down on him.
"Oh dear."
He jammed his bow as deeply as he could into its throat, only for a larger one to open grotesquely on its torso.
"Ohhhh dear."
He fought with the demon attached to his arm, but it held on tight.
"Oh bother."
As the thing was about an inch from his helmet, something approached at incredible speed, slamming into it and throwing it to the ground.
"Ornstein! How wonderful to see thee, Captain!"
The Dragonslayer stood before him, helmetless, red hair flying about wildly.
Planting his spear into the other demon, he levered it over the edge. It twisted in the air as it fell.
Stabbing his weapon into the bridge, he offered Gough both hands. "I had a duty…to my friends."
Sif leapt onto the demon that Ornstein had shoved off of the giant, ending it with a few deft strokes.
"Let's get you sorted, where are Ciaran and Artorias?"
"Well…"
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
"This is bad."
As if the converging horde wasn't bad enough, more demons kept falling down from the bridge above. A particularly cantankerous centipede demon fell and crushed a few Capra demons as they hefted makeshift weapons. The smaller demons weren't surviving the fall, but the big ones…
Artorias drove his sword into the ground, using it to help him climb to his feet with a groan. "Alright, let's take them down!"
Ciaran indicated the horde. "They're to your right, Artorias."
The Knight adjusted himself, squinting at the demons. "Alright, let's take them down!"
He charged into the mass, swinging his massive sword in a powerful arc that cut two Capra demons in half and wounded a Taurus. In his condition, he didn't see another Taurus that brought some sort of hammer down on his shoulder.
He fell to a knee, disoriented from the blow.
Ciaran jumped onto his back and leapt at the demon, burying her tracers in its eyes and twisting them.
It roared and fell away, flailing for a short while before succumbing to its wounds.
Artorias decided to switch up his tactics. He secured his shield on his back like a shell, taking his sword in both hands. He swung somewhat haphazardly, still mostly having success because they were being swarmed.
Ciaran bounced between enemies, hitting critical areas and poisoning them. As a Taurus demon charged her, she leapt up to meet it, pushing off its horns and allowing to bash its face against Artorias's shield. He grunted, but otherwise seemed fine. She tucked and rolled between his legs, hamstringing a centipede demon as it tried to blindside him.
Artorias noticed the creature after it slammed to the ground near him, and stabbed down, impaling its head.
"Look Ciaran, this is fun and all…" He took a claw to his side, turned and took off the demon's arm, "…but I don't think we're gonna last like this. We have to move."
She finished a demon after a few deft strokes. "I'm open to suggestions, front-line fighting really isn't my strong suit!"
"Well…" He stabbed at a demon, missing completely, "…don't be too alarmed, but I think I'm losing sight completely."
"What?!"
"I said don't be alarmed!" He spun, decapitating a serpent-like demon as it opened its mouth wide.
"We need to get you back to our cleric. Now!" She deflected claws away from her face.
"I think I would have a hard time—" a demon slammed into his abdomen, "Oof! A hard time climbing up to that bridge, even if I weren't going blind right now!" His swing managed to connect, slicing into a demon and sending it stumbling backwards. "You have to go; I know you can make it!"
"Are you desiring a martyrdom, Artorias? That's not going to happen." She blocked a viscous blow.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
After regrouping on the bridge, the two Knights had decided that a rescue was in order. Using Sif to ferry the remaining civilians down the rubble of the collapsed bridge, they had managed to make it to the ground relatively easily. Most of the nearby demons seemed focused on the two below.
With the knights and the people tucked away momentarily, Ornstein and Gough dashed into action. Well, Gough strolled into action, not being built for quickness.
The Captain slashed and stabbed his way into the mob, loosing lightning occasionally. Every so often, he would get a glimpse of Artorias flailing wildly. What is he doing? He was trained better than that.
Suddenly, Ciaran was there by his side. "Ornstein, thank the gods you're here!"
He nodded, skewering a Capra and throwing it aside. "What sort of Captain would I be if I abandoned my post?"
She brought a demon down. "Artorias is almost completely blind over there! We need that cleric!"
He considered their position. "That would be problematic, what with all the demons here. What we need to do is disappear. We cannot take on the whole demon city by ourselves."
Ciaran looked to her items on her belt. "I think I can help with that."
A moment later, Gough was visited by Ciaran on his shoulder. "Ah! Ciaran! I'm very glad to see you are well! Tell me, how was it that you two young people survived the fall? After all, it is quite a ways down, I'd say—"
She cut into his ramble. "Gough! I need you to loose fire arrows with these attached to them, so we can make an exit!"
The giant was holding his thumb up and looking at it against the collapsed bridge. "—approximately one thousand, two hundred, and thirty-two feet high. I told them it was excessive, you know. A poor choice on their part."
"Gough!"
"Hm? Oh yes, grand idea." The Hawkeye fixed the bombs to several of his huge arrows.
"Here we go, get ready to run! Ha ha!"
He was already walking backwards when he began firing into the crowd. Huge clouds of smoke billowed up from wherever they struck. In the confusion, Ornstein grabbed Artorias's arm and led him away into the ruins of Izalith.