Each of the cultists took a party member and bound them with rope. Half dragging them to the circle in the middle of the cavern’s floor. Throwing their weapons into the middle of the circle and dropping them down at equal points around the circle. The stranger donned his own robes but left the hood down. He returned and slowly walked around the circle. Inspecting the party as they were forced to their knees.

  “Fire and rage, a perfect specimen.” He said as he looked at Mayhem.

  “Piss off!” She shouted back. The stranger, seemingly the leader of whatever group they were caught by, walked past and to Thunder.

  “You’ll do, I suppose.” He said. Thunder growled low in her throat. He didn’t even stop as he passed Kilek. Instead going straight to Jiit.

  “Another forged in fire. You will help further our cause.” He said smugly. Jiit said nothing. He came to Shaynen and paused. Looking at him suspiciously.

  “And how does your spirit guide you?” He asked. Shaynen grit his teeth and spat at him. “That’s a shame. You’ll serve. One way or another, you’ll serve.” He walked away and the robed cultist holding Shaynen’s shoulders gave a snicker before kicking him swiftly in his back.

  “Let us commence the ritual. Our goddess waits.” The cult leader said. Taking point at the head of the circle. He began speaking in a strange tongue and the bonfire lit on its own.

  In a deft twist, Shaynen slipped out of his binds. He turned and open palm hit the cultist hard in the knee. Breaking it and dropping the cultist to the ground, smashing their head on a rock. Shaynen jumped to his feet. Mayhem broke through her binds in a feat of strength. The cultist donned a club and brought it down onto her shoulder. But it bounced off her with seemingly no effect. She picked up her trident from the circle and turned. Thrusting her weapon in a perfect arch. Skewering the cultist and lifting him up into the air before throwing him to the ground into the fire.

  The cultist behind Jiit spoke a curse and a lance of flame came down on Jiit. But at the last minute his claws finally sawed through his binds and he rolled out of the way. He ran to his hand crossbow and quiver. Loading a bolt. Kilek cut right through his binds and stood up to the cultist before him. The cultist hit Kilek with the club as hard as he could but the club broke as it connected with Kilek’s hard tortoise shell. Kilek laughed at the man and he visibly shrunk.

  Thunder’s claws cut through her binds, the cultist overseeing her cast a curse and brought out a lash of flame. But before the final command could be spoken. Thunder uppercut the hooded woman in the jaw. Breaking a few of her teeth. The cultist’s face tilted up from the force and Thunder reacted swiftly. Her claws slitting the cultist’s throat open. Shaynen spared a moment to look at the unmoving cultist. Frozen in fear at killing a man.

  “Shaynen!” mayhem roared, breaking the paralytic spell on him. He looked at her with wide eyes. “Stop the ritual! Take out the leader!” The world came flooding back to him. He scooped up the quarterstaff and ran to knock the leader’s legs from under him. The swing rebounded off the air around the leader. Mayhem roared in her rage and charged the leader, trident poised and ready to run him through. The points of her trident hit the same invisible armor Shaynen hit. Her attack rebounding and staggering her.

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  Kilek took his cultist by the shoulders and gave him a hard shake. The hood fell and the man garbled out the curse commands and a lash of flame came down over Kilek’s shell. It fizzled out and drove Kilek to laugh harder.

  “You’ve got to have something better than that!” Kilek laughed. The man shrunk more. Jiit aimed at the hooded cultist who was preparing to cast another spell. Jiit pivoted at the last second and shot a bolt at the leader instead. With a little flicker of light, the bolt pierced his shoulder but the man did not pause in his chanting. The cultist behind Jiit finished his spell but this did not come with a lash of fire; instead a lance of darkness flew over his head and circled the cult leader.

  Thunder appeared from the darkness and cut the man from clavicle to gut before vanishing again into the darkness. Shaynen took a step back watching the circling mage armor, his eyes traveled around until-THWAK. His strike passed through the force and hit the chanting cultist in the diaphragm. The man wheezed and fought to stay on his feet.

  “Enough!” Shaynen commanded. The cultist looked at Shaynen with hate. He drew in a deep breath and resumed the chanting. Mayhem attacked, trying to attack in the same place that Shaynen did but her attack only bounced off harmlessly. The cultist that Kilek had shook himself free of Kilek’s grip and ran to his leader’s side. Dodging Kilek and Mayhem’s swings. Casting another lance of blackness that absorbed into the leader, bolstering his voice.

  “Watch your back!” Jiit called before releasing another bolt. As it sailed through the air, it burst into flames. The cultist beside his leader quickly spat a curse and a lash of fire cut right through the bolt.

  “Hey, I’m not done with you!” Kilek yelled and ran to the cultist who had left his side. He slashed with his claws but the cultist dove to the ground. Mid-swing, Kilek saw Thunder’s blade appear just inches below his own swing. Thunder’s glowing eyes coming into view before vanishing again with a whisper of a growl.

  Shaynen’s eyes darted around as it followed the flicker of weakness. Waiting for it to be in the right spot. Then he struck. Hitting the cultist leader in the small of the back hard with a teeth grinding smack. The leader choked and spat but he continued on. The air grew thick as the ritual continued.

  “Enough Magic!” Mayhem roared, shaking the walls. She threw her entire body weight into her swing. The trident’s three points hitting the darkness but with a high pitched twang, the blackness burst and Mayhem stabbed into the leader’s chest. Throwing him to the ground. “Coward!”

  “Arise the rot and may it take you!” The last cultist said, he drew a dagger and slit his own throat. The room went silent. The air was still.

  The bonfire in the middle of the room suddenly burst into black flame. With it came the return of the sound.

  “Get back!” Thunder yelled from the other end of the room. The rest of the party ran to the edge of the room. The bonfire roared, the leading cultist dropped to his knees. Black tendrils came from the fire and wrapped around the leader. Crushing his bones and dragging the mangled body into the flames. Then the bonfire went out and the room was still.

  “What happened?” Shaynen asked. “Where’d he go? What was that thing?”

  “I don’t know, cultist shit.” Jiit said. “ They always summon random demons and other horrors.”

  “Shh, it’s not over yet.” Kilek said. The fire sputtered back to life and out from it burst forth the cultist. Now equipped with black glass like claws and teeth. Sticky and oozing horns growing out of his head. His eye sockets were empty and oozing more of the black ick. The stench of vile rot and death filled the room like a miasma. Mayhem choked and dropped to her knees clutching her throat.

  “Don’t let the ooze touch you in any way.” Kilek said. Then the cultist charged.