Kirsty blinked at the sword that Ishan had tossed her then at the charging men. "Right.." She urged her mount forward meet one of the familiar brutes. She parries his first attack, thankful suddenly for the stage combat class she had taken. Still, stage combat wasn't going to save her in a really sword fight, especially not on horseback. She had to get the upper hand.

She dodged another strike the yanked back on her horse's reigns, urging the beast to rear up and kick at the other rider with its front hooves. She clung to the horn and pummel of her saddle to keep from falling off of her own mount. She heard the horse's kick make contact with something, she hoped it was the other rider's head but she didn't wait to find out. As soon as her horse had all four feet on the ground again she struck out at the other rider with her sword, then darted her mount out of the way.

The man battered away the gout of flame with that shield again, the flame being dashed harmlessly away by the magic shield though Kristy had been busy dealing with her own problem as her sword clashes off of her ex guard's with enough force that her's is nearly rip from her grasp. He was that much stronger than she and he battled fiercely.

Neither had training on horse back for this sort of thing, however and her horse rears back and strikes out with her hooves at something.

The other rider? The saddle of the horse? She wasn't sure though as her steed came back down she noticed that the man must have been thrown out of the saddle given that he was scrambling up to his feet. She swung with the advantage of height being above him in the saddle she catches him before he can get his blade up to defend herself, her right thigh is covered with his blood s he drops.

Whirling her stead about she finds that Ihsan is stymied by the protections of the magic shield thus far and Kevin and his opponent are dismounted, Kevin on his back with his opponent closing in.

"Shit!!" She swore when she saw her fiance was in trouble. She spurned her horse into action and charged the man going after Kevin. She didn't try attacking him with her sword, she simply tried to mow him over with her horse. She'd have a much easier time besting an already injured opponent and being trampled by a running stallion would certainly injure the man.

The horse was another weapon entirely that most people could not defend against. You did not simply hold your ground against a steed, it was foolish to try and as Kevin was about to by it his opponent turned to face the thundering stead, intent to evade it before it grew too close but Kevin saw his opening and took it running the man through as he took advantage of the opening.

And then there was one. The better trained of the three equipped with a magical shield though their were other indirect spells Ihsan could have used he was annoyed in that his focus had been rather straight forward, at least initially though he regretted it he sent a blast of fire at the stead incinerating it and tossing the man aside out of the saddle, magical darts hurled towards the man as he struggled to get up slamming him in the back a few times as the man dropped quite dead.

The phantom stead already being whirled back in the direction of the others as he pressed on immediately, driven by his need to rescue his daughter.

She was relieved that she'd been in time to save Kevin. "Are you alright?" She asked and dropped down off her horse to check on him. She was certain she'd be able to catch up with Ishan. The undoubtedly bloody path he was about to curve through the Eclipse gang members would lead her to him. "That was an awfully close call." She looked around for his horse. If she couldn't find it then they would have to double up.

“Tell me about it. Thanks.”

Ihsan had not waited on the humans rather traveling straight ahead without pause doubting that he would face as stiff as an opponent from the other thugs as the one with the magic shield that was still simply lying there.

Looking for Kevin's horse Kristy had not found it and it must have bolted. Hers should have too as it was not war trained … or was it? That would explain why it wasn't spooked like Kevin's stead after all and could be directed against opponents to run them down when an ordinary horse would move around them.

"Looks like you are going to need a ride." She smilies and gestures towards her horse. "How about you drive and I'm ride behind you and fight off anyone who Ishan missed."

“Alright,” Kevin smiles as they make their way to the horse. He saddles up and extends his hand to assist her up. Riding after Ihsan they are not slowed as he was in having to deal with inconsequential threats seeing bodies here and there.

Some are still alive but unconscious or other wise disabled so they can ride by unchallenged. They catch up to Ihsan at the rise of a hill casting his gaze down into a valley where there seems to be a camp of these men.

His senses magically enhanced he is scanning the camp.

“They have a golem with them … a creature essentially immune to magic. A select few spells work on them and it's not universal but different from golem to golem type.” He explains as he looks at the camp.

“I think most of them are in that cave there at the hill over there. They want the crown and I miscalculated not considering it since I put up the seal nearly two centuries ago.”

Kirsty frowns down at the camp and the massive golem standing guard. "Magic won't work on it, huh? Kinda wish we had some heavy explosives. She looks to Kevin hopefully. "is there anything you could cook up to take that thing out?"

“If I had about a week I could come up with something, a primitive cannon is easy enough to make -”

“No time for that,” the elf sighed as he looked out at the camp. They knew that he was coming, he would not disappoint. “I'll deal with it. You two will have to get my daughter. By the time you'd get out of there the thing will be lured away, destroyed if I can manage it. This won't last for long but go left, left, right, straight and you will get to the chamber with the crown otherwise you will be hopelessly lost if you do not follow those directions explicitly. Left, left, right, straight ...” he repeated before casting an invisibility spell on the pair allowing them to sneak up to the cave while he made his presence know drawing out the defenders. The maze was dark though there was a pair of magically lit torches at the entrance. First choice was a simple left or right.

Kirsty gave both paths an uncertain look, not liking the dimly lit passageways. "He said left first, correct?" She asked her fiancee, feeling mostly certain but wanting confirmation from the analytical mind of her scientist husband to be. Kirsty preferred to work with maps rather than verbal directions. She was relaying on Kevin to have a better memory for the directions the old elf had given them.

“Left, left, right, straight.” Kevin repeated as they traveled on avoid who knows what for traps and/or guards. All went quit well, the path they took magically illuminating as they passed then going out as they passed areas always in a nimbus of light with darkness behind them.

Following the directions things were going easy for them until thy got to their fourth choice. Expecting an intersection they only had two choices, left and right.

“Wait, we didn't mess up I don't think ...” Kevin was a bit confused. Perhaps the elf gave them the wrong directions.

Kirsty was just as puzzled as Kevin was as she looked down the corridor. "I don't think so..." She retraced their steps in her head and then shook it. "No, I'm certain we did it right. Perhaps Ihsan got the directions mixed or maybe they changed it..." She paused as another option popped into her head and she walked forward and reached out to touch the wall in front of her. "Or maybe there is a hidden door. Look around for a switch or something."

Kevin nodded and came forth. His hands slide against the cool wall as he searched though it was Kristy that found it as her hand disappeared through a portion of the wall. Soon the two found that their was a doorway sized hole that they could move through .

Kevin grinned and looked at her. He stepped forward and planted a kiss on her lips. He would have figured it out in time but he would have second guessed himself and retraced his steps wasting time as he walked back to the start and began over. She hand saved them a ton of time though he was the first one through the wall just in case. Beyond the illlusionary wall was a corridor some sixty feet long that ended in a metallic door that did not push of pull, it took a moment for Kevin to realize that the door was a deliberate mislead the door slide upward revealing a chamber beyond, two men here whirled their attention to the door as they stood with Greeana between here forcing here to recite some sort of chant.

There was a crown here on a pedestal cloak in a nimbus of white light. Other guards must have been elsewhere in the maze having spit up though there was no signs o their passing, no string or marks on the wall indicating that they must have been making a map of the place as they search and these two, one large and one small man must have just gotten lucky or forced Greeana ti find the crown for them.

The smaller Eclipse member approached her the larger Kevin as Greeana seemed oblivious to them and kept chanting.

Kirsty smiles, delighted by the kiss then follows Kevin through the wall. It wasn't long before they were in the thick of trouble again. They found Greeana but with her were two guards who seemed determined that she not be interrupted in the middle of her chant. Kirsty didn't like the looks of this. It was obvious that the men where forcing the petite elf to aid them in whatever dark magic they'd been trying to harness in their last hide out.

"Greeana, we are here to rescue you! You can stop chanting." She called out but knew her words were meaningless if she couldn't back them up. She turned her gaze to the shorter guard heading her way. "Oh hey, did you wanna dance?" She still had her sword from earlier and pointed it at him as he advanced, figuring confidence would make up for a lot. After all, he didn't know about her lack of combat skill. She twirled the sword like a master, really it was just flashing showmanship but it still looked neat even if it was a useless move. "I have had a full night of it but I suppose I have room on my dance card for one more. I just hope you are better at it than your friends out front were. They made such a mess on my shoes."