Septimius had to bite his lips as not to scream while Jessica carried him, he gasped and wrestled in her hold, his hand over his heart. He was placed on the ground as Jessica confronted Tibalt and he shivered on the ground. Curling up into a ball, he struggled around, his hand scrambling over his chest. He couldn't breathe, he felt like his lungs were on fire and someone was pulling his heart out with their bare hands. He let out a few pitiful wails and drew in ragged sobs as he struggled to scream. It hurt so much, just too much, he vomited out the blood that was filling his lungs and convulsed on the floor, cold sweat covering his pale face and his eyelids flickered like a candlelight. His ears roared with the sound of his heart pounding, its irregular pattern varying in strength and consistency, sometimes as strong as a marching drum, and sometimes as weak as a pebble falling onto leaves.

This was too much for her... or anyone, just when she was sure that everything was going to be ok, the worst thing happened. Gabriel was hanging from Tibalt's filthy hands, completly unconscious and defeated. At first she froze up, not even a word could come out from her mouth. She placed Septimius on the ground carefully as she heard Tibalt's voice... It wasn't until he hit Gabriel again that Jessica yelled to him in a desperate angry tone "LET GO OF HIM!" The swordswoman immediately withdrew her sword and she was ready to launch herself into battle, but to her surprise the blade fell to the ground as if she couldn't lift it, suddenly all her senses got numb and she fell to her knees against her will.

"Not now... NOT NOW!! PLEASE...." Jessica thought to herself as her body refused to stand up, her ribcage and arm started to hirt again, but even more now after the fight with Nikita that made her wounds slightly worse, she kept listening to Tibalt's voice with a frown on her face, she lifted her head towards him as if she was looking at the demon. Tho when he mentioned her brother... and how he's taking Gabriel away from her now, a deep sadness flooded her heart. She didn't say anything, but her eyes were now looking at the ground just as Tibalt mentioned to her how it practically wasn't worth to keep her head up. She knew what was commig but she wasn't ready for it... the demon left with Gabriel to who knows where, probably hell itself, Jessica doesn't know if she's going to ever see him again... alive... tears rolled down her face as she tried to hold her own screams, the woman scratched the ground holding dirt tightly on her hands.

Once again she has lost someone that she loved.... by the hands of the same demon, she stood there for quite a few seconds until she heard Septimius groans of pain. She stood up slowly, her legs stumbled with each step and kneeled next to Septimius, with tears still comming out from her eyes she said to him with a sad shaky tone "Septimius... please... don't leave. I-... I won't make it if you leave as well... I'm not that strong...." she kept her head looking at the ground trying to hide her face from the rest as the tears could be clearly seen when they reached the ground. She was destroyed physically and emotionally, Septimius was practically her best friend... losing another loved one would be too much for her poor heart to handle "I swear I'd do anything to save his life.... please... don't die..." she thought again as she was trying to stay awake herself, still feeling quite dizzy and exhausted. She'd soon fall unconscious as well.

Marcus felt himself calm down as he quickly sheathed his sword and moved closer to Lissette, who was struggling to breathe. He didn't say a word to her as he gently scooped her up in his strong arms. Marcus tried calming her as he picked her up, "shhhhh focus on your breathing, darling."

Marcus moved Lissette outside only to see the demon prince escape with Gabriel. He didn't know what gabriel had been thinking, and it didn't seem fair for him to just allow himself to be taken from Jessica, but they must persevere. Marcus wanted to help Jessica, and septimius, and Ahriman, but for now he'd lend his support to Lissette because he couldn't stand to see her in pain.

Marcus gently placed Lissette down on her back and elevated her feet. He fixed her hands together on her stomach in a more natural relaxed position. Marcus called out to the others, "Liss and Septimius need help first, as their wounds are the worst. If you can heal with magic, please help Lissette as her wounds are internal from the looks of it." Marcus looked back to Liss and smiled at her as she slowly tried to breathe. Marcus looked calm, and hoped it would help calm her as he gently placed his hand over hers and kissed her forehead. "I'll always fight for you... I'm your soldier... now please, Lissette, fight for me a little longer."

It's a horrible day for rain.

Desmond, thrown back by some of the intense fighting, lay shackled to the ground with shock. So much happened in so little time that everything was a blur. Ghan was simply tossed ton one side like a ragdoll and he himself was of no use. All around him, his allies were dead, grieving or on the last legs of life. One of the final moments of the battle that stuck was Gabriel's taking. He was gone.

Like the others.

Jessica and Marcus's grief pierced through the haze of bewilderment, snapping him back to reality. They were alive; the feathers were here. We need to tend to the wounded.

Not knowing where to turn to help, he decidedly went to Jessica's side as she held Septimius in her arms. The mage was pale; blood loss was great and the hold in his chest tinged his clothing crimson. Jessica's cries froze Desmond in his tracks, the mere sight of a warrior breaking down shook him to his core. If a soldier, someone trained in discipline, has his will broken down to its base what has he? He knew he was less and yet the sight of death wasn't knew but the feeling of other's grief; the empathy that came along with the atmosphere washed through him and destroyed the apathy that walled his fear of death.

Ghan fixed himself to stand up and approached. Help them. He said. Gabriel is no longer here. Help them.

Desmond gulped and looked to Ghan passively. "You know there is only one way I know to save him."

The companion nodded silently, not a thought passed onto the stitcher's mind.

Desmond approached Jessica, he knelt and reluctantly curled his arm around her. With a choked plea, he told her: "I can save him but I have to revisit my old haunts," the stitcher said. "If we can't find a way to heal him soon, I can offer one thing that healing cannot undo; I can revive him but he returns as a stitched."

Jessica couldn't stop thinking in Gabriel, Septimius, Lissette... 2 of them terribly wounded... Jessica started to think that she'll probably won't see Gabriel alive ever again. She was trying her best to hold her emotions back but the tears comming out from her face couldn't be helped, the warrior felt as if a piece of her heart was taken away from her. Then she felt an arm around her, attempting to comfort her she lifted her head as if she was looking at Desmond she used one of her hands to clean her face even tho it was useless her tears would keep rolling down her face. In a shaky sad tone she slowly said to him "I don't know what to do Desmond.... we can't let them die her- AAH!" She groaned in pain as she holded her chest with her good arm the pain was growing she was also wounded but she only cared about the others' safety at the moment. She took a few seconds to catch her breathe again. "I'm glad to hear that-.... you have a plan B".

She turned to Septimius once again paying attention to his heartbeats, hoping that somehow he could heal up and survive, she was also feeling more dizzy and exhausted as the seconds passed.

"Let's go Jessica," Desmond said, he nodded to Ghan just nearby. "We need to get moving."

The stitched companion went to the blind swordswoman's aid, holding her right arm over its shoulder as it stood up gently. Septimius was caught by Desmond as Jessica rose from her kneel. Carefully, Desmond hauled Septimius over onto his back and heaved his legs to stand. So far they held.

"We need to get someplace safe so these guys can rest," He said. "Can anyone secure a place?"

"Come friends! To glory! To VICTORY!"

These are the words Ravin would have said, had he not, upon the opening of the door, been thrown aside by his comrades, all too eager to get inside. He landed face first in the dirt, and Cerulean was thrown wide. When he regained his footing, the battle had apparently come to a halt, and conversation was taking place downstairs. He sighed, brushed himself off, and went to find Cerulean

Now, some scholars theorize that metal, even the simplest of irons, when forged is given life. Everything from the greatsword to the plough takes on a sense of life, and that everything is linked by that forge in which they are made. All crafts are real living things, and they are quite possibly the wisest of all

Ravin didn't believe this. He knew for a fact that metal isn't just given life, it needs to be created by a vengeful blacksmith by manipulating the powers of the divine. He would have to have word with these scholars. When he found Cerulean, it was lodged deep into the trunk of a tree. Pulling it out, he noted with regret that the venom had all but dissipated. Stowing it away again, he walked down into the crypt, and greeted his comrades warmly.

"Good friends! What have I missed!"

OOC: Winter, get on IRC

She shook her head several times before standing up, the world felt like if it was spinning around her and she soon started to feel the same way as she felt back in the cemetary... maybe worse due to the fight against Nikita, even tho she wasn't hit, she did fight against him with her bones shattered and her whole body already exhausted, she went far beyond her limits and now she was paying the price for it as soon as Ghan started to help her up Jessica felt more and more tired, "Desmond... Ghan..." she said with difficulty, ans breathed heavily as she tried to continue "I can't-...".

After that everything went numb for her, the last thing Jessica felt was her body hiting the ground uncappable to continue, her last thoughts were about her wounded friends... hoping that someone or anything could help them get better... she also thought of Gabriel, one last tear rolled down her face as she realised how weak she was compared to the demons she has to face in order to get her revenge and bring Gabriel back... IF he's still alive by then. Once again, she felt like she was completly alone.

As Marcus held Lissette in his arms as he thought about trying to make her better. He thought about how Gabriel healed the wounded before. He must have received that blessing from an angel... Could any angel have this effect on humans? Certainly Marcus wouldn't want to divide his power and bestow his gift of strength to a human, but perhaps he could help them like he helped Jessica defeat Nikita.

Marcus placed his hand on Lissette's chest and whispered a few words into her ear. His hand began to glow on her chest where her injuries were, and she could feel the warm embrace of his word enter her body and begin working to heal her wounds. This would be much slower than Gabriel's healing power, but it would allow her body to heal itself faster than she was dying. She would live, but only after resting for a few hours to let the healing take place before she would feel better than ever.

He whispered one more time in her ear, "I love you."

"Now that I think on it," Desmond mused. "There is one place that's nearby. Its my dead master's place. Its safe there."

The stitcher waited on some of the guy's approval, intrigued at Marcus' show of healing power.

The others nodded at the idea of rest, and the severely injured were carried off as Desmond and Ghan lead the way through the secret alleys and different paths that eventually lead to his old master's headquarters. He opened the door to find that it was just how he had left it all that time ago.

As Desmond opened the door, everything was still intact. The lab itself, the centerpiece to the entire place, was as bloody as it was before. The operating table was devoid of any body but it was caked with so much blood that it formed a layer of crimson. Tools of the trade were laid out on a nearby steel table, unclean and diseased, it would be best kept out of reach. Jars of guts were shelved just nearby. To the right, was the only cleanest area of the home -- a study where books and a few chairs were laid out. Just near it was a door, locked and barred. A sign on it read: "Body room". Tools were laid across to the right where a small workshop was placed. It was littered with crude weapons like hooks and cleavers. Somewhere, across a hall down to the left, would lead to his small room with his belongings and the body of his late master, Creese.

"Welcome to my home," Desmond said flustered from carrying Septimius on his back. "Just don't mind the blood and gore everywhere."

Ghan and his master set Jessica and the mage down onto the chairs, careful not to move them too much.