They were so close to the Temple of Mythal now. Rom could see the walls through the trees from here, across a large gap that had to be a river, a natural barrier to entry.
That meant Corypheus could see it too, and Marcus. A single bridge on a far side of a clearing was their only easy way across to the temple, excellently constructed out of stone and wide enough for at least ten soldiers in full gear to stand side by side. It looked to be in remarkably good shape for something so old, but Rom had far greater concerns at the moment than the architecture.
It was a race to the bridge entryway, one that the Inquisition won. They formed up on their Commander, putting together a wall of shields and bodies between the path across the river and Corypheus. It allowed the rest of the Irregulars to make their way across the bridge while they could. Vesryn looked about to collapse, but managed to make it across with the help of Estella and Cyrus. Astraia, Harellan, and Zee were at their backs, and before long they were clear of the fighting.
Rom turned to find the self-proclaimed god at the head of his Venatori soldiers. There were others at his side, as well. A few surviving red templars and even some Grey Wardens, all slaves to his will. Corypheus hadn't lost any height since the last time they saw each other, still standing at least ten feet tall. "You waste my time, pretender," he said, a fire spell of some sort already lit in his hand. His words were directed at Rom. "Your deaths will not keep me from the Well of Sorrows."
"You couldn't kill us at Haven. You won't kill us now. You're the one dying today." He hadn't been able to find his voice when Haven fell. But thanks to all he'd been through since then, he could find it now.
Corypheus did not seem to care. "Death is a mere trifle to a god. Yet another impossibility I have conquered." He hurled the fire at their formation, and the battle began.
It was a familiar scene for Rom and Khari both: Corypheus hurling powerful spells and taunting them—thinking them powerless. No doubt it rankled her just as much now as it had then, and just as before, she charged to meet the darkspawn head-on. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be, not right away, anyhow. One of the red templars moved to intercept her, and she was forced to draw up short, a frustrated noise loud enough to reach him emerging from behind her helm. The templar nearly caught her with a lyrium spike, the protrusion scraping heavily against the armor protecting her side, but Khari turned her body and the plates held.
It allowed her to bring her sword around for the counterstrike, aimed between shoulder and chin. But the templar turned into the blow as well, and the blade left a dent in his pauldron, but no more. Pulling back, Khari tried again, thrusting forward this time for his less-protected armpit and finding it—but not before a Venatori mage caught her with a chain lightning spell, one that arced over her armor and sped towards the others too.
It did not spread too far before it was killed off by a wall of pink. With the other bodies cut off from its path, the lightning fizzled and just as quickly as it appeared, the wall dropped, Asala's full attention drawn elsewhere. She had a deep-set frown on her lips-- perhaps the closest she could possibly come to a snarl. Her hands danced in the air, alight in magic and conducting a symphony of barriers behind the main line of fighting. Corypheus's fire spells could not connect in full with the formation, the brunt of them fizzling against pink barriers where both flame and shield erased the other.
Between warding off spells, other barriers sprung up in Corypheus's own formation, in an attempt to split his group and single out opponents for their forces to capitalize her. For her part, Asala kept enough wits about herself to stay with the rest of her group so that she did not leave herself defenseless. Her attention was split a great many ways, but by the way her head tilted and her eyes kept watching, she was doing a well enough job of managing.
The mage himself who'd slung the chain lightning suddenly seized up with a shriek, rendered unable to move or cast in what was a dimly-familiar way to Rom. Sure enough, Leon stepped in not a moment later, laying hands on either side of his head and wrenching, cutting off the suffering of burning lyrium in his blood.
Unfortunately, the maneuver left his back temporarily vulnerable, and though there were few weapons he really had to worry about in as much armor as he was wearing, hammers were decidedly one of them. The clang of one colliding with his platemail was followed swiftly by a creaking whine as the metal protested the impact. Leon whirled—there was a distinct crater in the armor at his back, but it didn't look to have quite split or broken at least. When the hammer came in for his head the second time, he caught it in both hands, attempting to wrench it free of the red templar knight who held it. He couldn't manage it, and both men pulled against one another, locked in a struggle that left each of them vulnerable.
Amalia ended the contest before it could drag out too long, leaping onto the templar's back and dragging her knife across his throat. She pushed herself away as he collapsed, landing lightly and ducking back into the fray. No doubt she was trying to get at Marcus, but she seemed patient enough not to foolishly risk herself for an extra few feet of ground.
The Venatori mages were hampered by Asala's barriers, but Corypheus was not delayed long. The next fire spell he unleashed seemed designed for shattering defenses, and exploded against her barrier with a deafening crack, sending shards of the molten magic raining down on friend and foe alike. He pushed through the opening alongside many of his best; Corypheus did not charge necessarily, but the stalking strides of his unnaturally long legs carried him forward swiftly all the same.
Rom went to meet him. He was the one who had to face him, after all, or so he felt. He would do it with Khari and with Asala and Leon if he could, but there was no other enemy on this field that concerned him more than the darkspawn magister leading them. A bolt of lightning flashed past his shoulder, leaving the hair on the back of his neck standing straight up, the heat still almost burning on his cheek even a few moments after it had gone. He closed the distance.
With a claw-like hand Corypheus slashed down at Rom, forcing him to roll underneath the attack and out of the way. He brought his blade around in a backwards stab when he came back to his feet, and it found the back of the Elder One's calf, biting through robe and flesh alike. Honestly, he hadn't expected to be able to wound him that simply, but there it was.
Corypheus hardly seemed to feel the hit, though, and his next slash was too quick to dodge. Rom got his shield up in time, but the force of the blow nearly cracked it, and was enough to toss him aside, skidding across stone and earth until he came to a stop at Leon's feet.
The Commander was quick to bend down and help him to his feet, effectively picking him up by the back of his armor's collar and setting him to rights more quickly than he'd have been able to get to his feet on his own. Leon had to fend off another incoming attack in the process, this one from one of the thralled Wardens; he grimaced and kicked back against the woman's chestplate, releasing Rom and following up with a series of heavier punches.
Once she was down, he took several more hard steps forward, pushing through the line and leaving just enough room for some of the others to do the same in his wake. It was slow, hard going even for him, but finally—finally—they broke through the defenses and set upon Corypheus.
Khari tried first, springing forward with both hands on her sword, the enchantment glowing a pulsing, dark green as if with its own heartbeat. There was nothing subtle about their approach, and Corypheus noticed immediately, loosing his next spell on her instead of the whole group of them. A pair of too-long fingers hovered near his temple, the telekinetic blast lifting her right off her feet despite her best efforts and throwing her backwards into the others. She crashed into Leon, only her awareness of space keeping her sword from landing anywhere unfortunate on either of them.
But there was a moment where Corypheus recovered from the spell, where he was just a little more vulnerable to assault.
Whatever moment they had was ruined by the unmistakable screech of a dragon, one that was all too familiar to Rom. They had one wing-beat on the wind of warning before it swooped overhead, making straight for the temple. Rom looked back to see the group almost at the door, and then they disappeared behind the wall of flames the dragon bellowed down on them, which was enough to leave the entire bridge engulfed.
It wasn't clear if they'd made it inside, but Rom had to believe they did. The dragon carried on into the distance; no doubt it would come around for another pass soon. At least there was no real decent landing spot for it here. It would have to keep to the skies, and there it could only do minimal damage to them. He pulled himself back together, shaking off the hit Corypheus had dealt him, and threw himself back into the fray.
That meant Corypheus could see it too, and Marcus. A single bridge on a far side of a clearing was their only easy way across to the temple, excellently constructed out of stone and wide enough for at least ten soldiers in full gear to stand side by side. It looked to be in remarkably good shape for something so old, but Rom had far greater concerns at the moment than the architecture.
It was a race to the bridge entryway, one that the Inquisition won. They formed up on their Commander, putting together a wall of shields and bodies between the path across the river and Corypheus. It allowed the rest of the Irregulars to make their way across the bridge while they could. Vesryn looked about to collapse, but managed to make it across with the help of Estella and Cyrus. Astraia, Harellan, and Zee were at their backs, and before long they were clear of the fighting.
Rom turned to find the self-proclaimed god at the head of his Venatori soldiers. There were others at his side, as well. A few surviving red templars and even some Grey Wardens, all slaves to his will. Corypheus hadn't lost any height since the last time they saw each other, still standing at least ten feet tall. "You waste my time, pretender," he said, a fire spell of some sort already lit in his hand. His words were directed at Rom. "Your deaths will not keep me from the Well of Sorrows."
"You couldn't kill us at Haven. You won't kill us now. You're the one dying today." He hadn't been able to find his voice when Haven fell. But thanks to all he'd been through since then, he could find it now.
Corypheus did not seem to care. "Death is a mere trifle to a god. Yet another impossibility I have conquered." He hurled the fire at their formation, and the battle began.
It was a familiar scene for Rom and Khari both: Corypheus hurling powerful spells and taunting them—thinking them powerless. No doubt it rankled her just as much now as it had then, and just as before, she charged to meet the darkspawn head-on. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be, not right away, anyhow. One of the red templars moved to intercept her, and she was forced to draw up short, a frustrated noise loud enough to reach him emerging from behind her helm. The templar nearly caught her with a lyrium spike, the protrusion scraping heavily against the armor protecting her side, but Khari turned her body and the plates held.
It allowed her to bring her sword around for the counterstrike, aimed between shoulder and chin. But the templar turned into the blow as well, and the blade left a dent in his pauldron, but no more. Pulling back, Khari tried again, thrusting forward this time for his less-protected armpit and finding it—but not before a Venatori mage caught her with a chain lightning spell, one that arced over her armor and sped towards the others too.
It did not spread too far before it was killed off by a wall of pink. With the other bodies cut off from its path, the lightning fizzled and just as quickly as it appeared, the wall dropped, Asala's full attention drawn elsewhere. She had a deep-set frown on her lips-- perhaps the closest she could possibly come to a snarl. Her hands danced in the air, alight in magic and conducting a symphony of barriers behind the main line of fighting. Corypheus's fire spells could not connect in full with the formation, the brunt of them fizzling against pink barriers where both flame and shield erased the other.
Between warding off spells, other barriers sprung up in Corypheus's own formation, in an attempt to split his group and single out opponents for their forces to capitalize her. For her part, Asala kept enough wits about herself to stay with the rest of her group so that she did not leave herself defenseless. Her attention was split a great many ways, but by the way her head tilted and her eyes kept watching, she was doing a well enough job of managing.
The mage himself who'd slung the chain lightning suddenly seized up with a shriek, rendered unable to move or cast in what was a dimly-familiar way to Rom. Sure enough, Leon stepped in not a moment later, laying hands on either side of his head and wrenching, cutting off the suffering of burning lyrium in his blood.
Unfortunately, the maneuver left his back temporarily vulnerable, and though there were few weapons he really had to worry about in as much armor as he was wearing, hammers were decidedly one of them. The clang of one colliding with his platemail was followed swiftly by a creaking whine as the metal protested the impact. Leon whirled—there was a distinct crater in the armor at his back, but it didn't look to have quite split or broken at least. When the hammer came in for his head the second time, he caught it in both hands, attempting to wrench it free of the red templar knight who held it. He couldn't manage it, and both men pulled against one another, locked in a struggle that left each of them vulnerable.
Amalia ended the contest before it could drag out too long, leaping onto the templar's back and dragging her knife across his throat. She pushed herself away as he collapsed, landing lightly and ducking back into the fray. No doubt she was trying to get at Marcus, but she seemed patient enough not to foolishly risk herself for an extra few feet of ground.
The Venatori mages were hampered by Asala's barriers, but Corypheus was not delayed long. The next fire spell he unleashed seemed designed for shattering defenses, and exploded against her barrier with a deafening crack, sending shards of the molten magic raining down on friend and foe alike. He pushed through the opening alongside many of his best; Corypheus did not charge necessarily, but the stalking strides of his unnaturally long legs carried him forward swiftly all the same.
Rom went to meet him. He was the one who had to face him, after all, or so he felt. He would do it with Khari and with Asala and Leon if he could, but there was no other enemy on this field that concerned him more than the darkspawn magister leading them. A bolt of lightning flashed past his shoulder, leaving the hair on the back of his neck standing straight up, the heat still almost burning on his cheek even a few moments after it had gone. He closed the distance.
With a claw-like hand Corypheus slashed down at Rom, forcing him to roll underneath the attack and out of the way. He brought his blade around in a backwards stab when he came back to his feet, and it found the back of the Elder One's calf, biting through robe and flesh alike. Honestly, he hadn't expected to be able to wound him that simply, but there it was.
Corypheus hardly seemed to feel the hit, though, and his next slash was too quick to dodge. Rom got his shield up in time, but the force of the blow nearly cracked it, and was enough to toss him aside, skidding across stone and earth until he came to a stop at Leon's feet.
The Commander was quick to bend down and help him to his feet, effectively picking him up by the back of his armor's collar and setting him to rights more quickly than he'd have been able to get to his feet on his own. Leon had to fend off another incoming attack in the process, this one from one of the thralled Wardens; he grimaced and kicked back against the woman's chestplate, releasing Rom and following up with a series of heavier punches.
Once she was down, he took several more hard steps forward, pushing through the line and leaving just enough room for some of the others to do the same in his wake. It was slow, hard going even for him, but finally—finally—they broke through the defenses and set upon Corypheus.
Khari tried first, springing forward with both hands on her sword, the enchantment glowing a pulsing, dark green as if with its own heartbeat. There was nothing subtle about their approach, and Corypheus noticed immediately, loosing his next spell on her instead of the whole group of them. A pair of too-long fingers hovered near his temple, the telekinetic blast lifting her right off her feet despite her best efforts and throwing her backwards into the others. She crashed into Leon, only her awareness of space keeping her sword from landing anywhere unfortunate on either of them.
But there was a moment where Corypheus recovered from the spell, where he was just a little more vulnerable to assault.
Whatever moment they had was ruined by the unmistakable screech of a dragon, one that was all too familiar to Rom. They had one wing-beat on the wind of warning before it swooped overhead, making straight for the temple. Rom looked back to see the group almost at the door, and then they disappeared behind the wall of flames the dragon bellowed down on them, which was enough to leave the entire bridge engulfed.
It wasn't clear if they'd made it inside, but Rom had to believe they did. The dragon carried on into the distance; no doubt it would come around for another pass soon. At least there was no real decent landing spot for it here. It would have to keep to the skies, and there it could only do minimal damage to them. He pulled himself back together, shaking off the hit Corypheus had dealt him, and threw himself back into the fray.