The hunt begins [quest-3 closed]

Claire blinked Shepard and Barry moved so quickly.. compared to Claire she most likely moved at the speed of a snail or slower. Her fist clenched together when she saw the two of them fighting, she stood their helplessly. She hated not being able to fight as a cleric, there wasn't a single weapon in her inventory all she was suppose to do was heal her comrades!

The creature recoiled at the sudden attack on its person. It seemed to mumble something before sending a barrage of magic attacks their way, waving their wood staff around, skull like face haunting in its stare. A bit of damage done to the side closest to Shepard. A deep crack was run down from the eye to the jaw. Shepard was able to dodge the first attack, but not the second--hitting him square on the chest. The blond staggered back, HP lowered.

While Claire was protected, Barry only had the Ability Shield's defense to dampen the attacks. A couple hit him but thanks to his ability the attacks did minimal damage. Pulling out his spear, he prepared to attack, although he didn't want to get very close. He looked to Shepard. "Are you okay?" he asked the boy.

As the creature drew nearer to attack, Claire recognized it from reading up on it. The monster was called a Wicken, it was able to use magic to attack.. such a fearful creature. The cleric moved closer to Shepard as he fought since he was taking damage, she hoped she would be able to heal during the fight. Preparing her healing cross a small glow emitted from it spreading to Shepard and Barry.

Shepard gave the man a nod, and looked back forward. It appeared that Barry was charging an attack. If that was the case, he'd better keep hacking away at the monster to give him time. Forcing himself back onto his feet, Shepard pushed forward and swiped again at the creature, catching its side with his blade. The creature once again hissed then sent a single much stronger attack at Shepard. The ball of energy hit him in the stomach, once again sending him flying back. The blond hit the ground with a sharp cry of pain--thankful for the aura of healing that Claire was emitting. With wide blue eyes, Shepard struggled to regain his breath.

The Wicken faced Barry, readying another attack.

With the healing aura that Claire was sending his way, Barry felt like he could defeat the creature easily. He pointed his spear at the creature and with his Interface flashing 'skill_1l', a beam of energy struck the Wicken, causing it to hiss in pain and shrink back. Barry took a deep breath and went to check on Shepard. "Do you need any help?" he asked, sticking his hand out to the boy.

The Wicken seemed very strong, but Claire had faith that both Shepard and Barry could defeat it. She was also there to help heal them they couldn't possibly lose. The cleric faced the Wicken as it let out a horrible screech, she glanced at it's health bar and it seemed to be pretty low. Claire's eyes widened when Shepard was hit with a powerful attack. The Cleric had focused on healing him for the moment, glancing towards Barry as he said something. "Don't worry about him." She told him.

"Yeah--I'm fine.' He rasped through his lack of breath, taking Barry's hand to pull himself up. "I've just got to be a little bit faster." Came his hoarse voice, and finding his feet under him. "He is low on HP.
Now is no time to stop...!" Eyes boring holes into the creature, Shepard tightened his grip on the sword and rushed forward. Each step was a pain--but he crossed the distance none of the less. With a shout, he drove the sword into the creature's abdomen. For a long moment they both stood stock still--unmoving.

Pixels fell from the mob like sand shifting from a sand dune, fading into nothingness. In the blond's hand was a fabric of clothing, and the blond blinked at it, letting his sword slip back into its holder. "Well, it dropped..." The fighter paused to analyze the item. "...Rotten Cloak Fabric." Shepard sent the two a look of annoyance. "That was absolutely worthless. Who wants it?"

With his HP regenerating, the blond glanced behind them eyes narrowing. "What is that over there?' He asked, pointing behind them at a smaller shadow, unmoving besides the breath that it took. Was it the child...?

Barry was about to joke about how that old cloth could be some mystical item when he followed Shepard's line of sight towards the small shadow near where the creature was. He, being the father he was, was the first to rush over to the bundle. It was the child! The young girl was only a few years old, probably no older than 6. She was unconscious, so he picked her up carefully, inspecting the young girl for any visible life-threatening injuries. Thankfully nothing was wrong save a couple cuts and bruises. "She's probably going to need medical attention, how fast do you think we can get her back to Roslare?" he asked, cradling the girl in his arms.