The wind brushed as a lover's touch across the pale skin of the Cursed One's face as he gazed out across the vast expanse of the open sea. It had been four long days confined within the dark carriages; four days over rocky roads sat on uncomfortable wooden seats with curtains drawn to keep sunlight out and secrets in. But though the journey was finally at a close it was not the end; no, now the secret would awaken into the morning light and the event of an age would begin.

The Dark Guardian turned from the glorious sight that lay before him and back towards his morbid chariot and the two others that were quickly approaching his position. A sly smile spread across his lips at the thought of the battle that was soon to begin.

Taking a particular piece of parchment from his belt, Vaul scanned the names and descriptions of the chosen contestants that were written upon it; the latter of the two was totally unneeded as all four warriors were well known to him already; and then further down to the rules that he had to enforce during the upcoming event. The match would not be a test of individual strength and skill but rather one of teamwork and co-operation, and this made it far more interesting.

Vaul glanced up again as the two remaining carriages pulled up alongside his own and the mysterious, cloaked coach drivers stepped down in unison and opened the doors releasing the four warriors from their voluntary, rolling prison. The first of two teams that he had been assigned was the House of Holy Moon which consisted of the moon demoness, Umbra, and the famed Archangel of Life, Zenith Meria. Vaul had had dealings with both in time past and knew well their skill in battle. The second of the teams was that of the House of Ossë consisting of the acclaimed Chosen of Lothlomendil, Sraxen, and none other than the Guardian of Water herself, Merenwen. Truly this would be a battle of epic proportions.

As the contestants stepped out of the carriages, Vaul stood up straight and began to address them, his black silk voice carrying out across the open plains and vast ocean.

"Honourable ladies and gentlemen, allow me to welcome you to the Shar'in Cliffs of the Eastern Coast. As you are all aware, in a few moments a test will commence in which you will battle to you utmost with the aim of defeating your rivals. But you will not be alone; to win you each have chosen a partner whom you must trust with your very life and work with to display teamwork and co-operative battle styles." Vaul raised his hand and gestured to the two coachmen who disappeared behind the carriages for a few moments.

"The battle will begin momentarily, but it will not be here... it will be down there!" Vaul turned with a smile and gestured over the great cliff towards a beach a hundred feet below. "Your first test is to reach the beach without using magical means and... to ensure that you do... gentlemen..." From out of nowhere the two mysterious drivers attached an iron shackle to the wrist of each contestant, linking them to their partner by a two metre glowing chain.

"I have enchanted these to unlock the moment both partners are on the beach but at the same time restrict both flight and ALL magic so your only way down is to climb... or to fall." Vaul said with a dark chuckle. "As soon as all four of you are over the edge the battle will commence. House Ossë will start to my left and House Holy Moon to my right." Vaul said, indicating to two points marked by flags fifty feet to his left and right.
"Now... I have said my piece. You have all been briefed in the coach of the rules. May the best team win and I will be watching closely. Good luck to you all. BEGIN!"


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OOC: Combat can start once all four players are on the cliff wall. Remember though, there may be no magic used while the chains are on. That includes deity magic. You are connected by two metres of chain and the teams seperated by 100metres on the cliff wall. The chains will drop off once your team is on the ground.

These are my rules for the match.

1. A player can only post once per round.
2. A round is comprised of four different players posting.
3. The order of which will be established once the four have made their initial contributions. All of the following rounds will proceed in that pattern.
4. You do not need to wait for me to post but if I do you must adhere to my OOC rulings.

Sitting in a carriage being tossed around for four days gave one a lot of time to think. The dwarf had chosen to utilize this time by dwelling on what would occur when the carriage that was carrying him came to the end of the bumpy roads and revealed their final destination. The moment couldn't come soon enough. Though he couldn't see where they were headed - their magistrate had done an excellent job of dressing the carriages so as to prohibit any sight beyond the wooden walls surrounding the combatants - he could smell it. He could smell the refreshing scent of the cool breeze as it passed by him, and knew at once that they were approaching a shoreline. He gave a sigh of relief as this revelation revealed itself. For all he knew, they could have been headed toward any number of locations, be it the Land of the Dead, Ungol Felas, or Morring the Everdark. But it was not to be. The Guardian of the Stars was leading them to the sea.

He turned to his left and glanced at his partner. She was a fair maiden of the Quendi, the Elves of Arda, with her long blonde hair and youthful features. But she was wiser than her years and held more power than one would suspect at first glance. Indeed, among the tall race of Elves, she stood only five feet, two inches. Her stature was not one that you would immediately associate with a warrior or skilled fighter. Looks could be deceiving. Perhaps Sraxen knew that better than anyone. The water guardian was caring, compassionate, and amiable, but she gave no quarter and took no nonsense. It was the exact attitude Sraxen had wanted when searching for a partner and, as different as they were, he was comfortable with the way things worked out. She was the kind of person you'd want to have at your side. Above all, he trusted her.

They were in this thing together. And together, they formed the House of Ossë, the only fitting name he could contrive for their partnership. Ossë, it had been told to him, was a spirit of the sea, a being that was one with the water in a way few could imagine. It didn't matter if Ossë was a true, tangible being or just the stuff of legends. It was what the idea represented, that someone could become so attuned to an element that one literally became that substance. And so, they had decided together that Ossë would be their goal to achieve, what they would strive to attain. For Sraxen, water was essential, necessary for life, and a tool to use, and an element to respect. For Merenwen, water was everything.

"We're almost there," he whispered to her. "It seems as if Fate is with us today. We're approaching the ocean."

After recognizing their location and being at peace about it, he turned his thoughts back to the tournament. He had already gleaned the identities of the pair he would be confronting today. The judges of this "duel of the conquerors" expected him and Merenwen to face off against Zenith Meria, the Archangel of Life, and Umbra Kontis, daughter of Rumasak the Moon Demon.

The judges could not have created a worser pairing of teams.

It was a well known fact that Sraxen and Zenith shared a deep connection with one another. Their histories and lives were interwoven together. Take one out of the equation, and the other fails to make sense. Both the angel and the Dwarf had joined the secretive group once known as the Keepers of the Sacred Deed, a faction that didn't last long but still managed to make an impact on the world of Arda. Though the disbanding of that guild did not mean the end of the connection between the two. They had been through so much together that it was simply folly to imagine the two friends fighting against each other.

It was this line of thought that Sraxen was mulling over before his carriage abruptly came to a halt and the blinds swiftly disappeared, revealing sunlight that nearly blinded the dwarf. He held his hand near his forehead to shade his eyes for a few seconds before finally opening the small door on the side of the vessel and making his way towards Vaul, another familiar face.

The slight ocean breeze was relaxing, and he welcomed it as he continued to keep the sun out of his eyes. The eastern coast was a scenic and pleasant locale to host the event. Though the ominous cliff wall certainly put a damper on the mood.

He was certain that he wasn't the only one surprised when the first thing Vaul did after the introductions was produce shackles that were subsequently placed around the wrist of each contestant, linking each to his or her partner. Sraxen gave Mere a questioning look as he pondered what this meant for the competition. His questions were answered, however, when Vaul explained.

"I have enchanted these to unlock the moment both partners are on the beach but at the same time restrict both flight and all magic so your only way down is to climb... or to fall. As soon as all four of you are over the edge the battle will commence. House Ossë will start to my left and House Holy Moon to my right."

He sighed again, not being a fan of the twist the Maia had chosen to implement. But he would deal with it nonetheless. He squinted as he turned his head towards Zenith, giving him a knowing look before turning his attention back towards Merenwen. They would have to scale the cliff wall together, with very little room for mistakes. He frowned slightly as he tried to come up with a solution. He brushed his right hand against Khûzera as he held his chin in his left. "Well, any ideas?"

Four days had passed by since Zenith had entered the carriage for one of Ardas most grand of tournaments with his partner Umbra. He had not spoken much during these days as his mind had been thinking about those Umbra and himself were to face in the first round of the team tournament, of all the beings in Arda why did Zenith have to be in a battle against the Water Guardian Merenwen and the Dwarf called Sraxen, who was more of a father figure to Zenith than anything else. The young angel knew both of these beings rather well, although in truth had not seen either one for some time now as he had been missing within Arda for awhile. Although some might have thought Zenith would have teamed up with Sraxen he had teamed up with Umbra, the pair had been through a lot together and Zenith knew well just how good the young woman was in battle, and of course the fact the pair had teamed up a few times in the past meant they knew each others moved just as well as there own!

Although Zenith was not able to see out of the carriage that he had been confined to he still hear the sounds from outside at the large horse drawn wooden box rushed towards its destination. It was as they drew closer and closer towards their battle arena that Zenith finally turned towards Umbra and let out a soft sigh from his lips before saying in an obviously worried tone; “Sorry I have not been very good company these four days Umbra, it’s just the thought of having to fight Sraxen really gets to me you know?” After these words had slipped along his lips Zenith bent his body forwards just a little and looked down towards the floor of the carriage. He was not allowed to use any of his armour for the upcoming fight and so the Archangel of Life was wearing a pair of long white pants, which where made out of a magical cloak known as Cloak of Neutrality while his sleeveless white cleric top was crafted from something called a Winters Embrace. Other than these items of clothing Zenith also had on a perfectly golden belt that held various potions within it. As for weapons the angel had only brought with him his Holy Blade and a fine mithril shield with the power to reflect various spells back at the caster, he also had various rings adorning his rings while two large silver bangles covered his wrists.

Just as Zenith was adjusting his Holy Blade as his side the carriage came to a stop. With the sound of wind slipping through the small cracks in the wood Zenith waited with Umbra for the carriage doors to be opened so he could see exactly where he would be fighting his friends. Soon the doors were opening and Zenith steps out, his long brown hair calming moving behind him with the flow of the winds as his deep blue eyes slowly came back into focus after being exposed to the light for the first time in four days. It was not long before the angel knew where he was, mainly because of the sound of the waves coming from below him, for some reason Vaul had brought them all to the cliffs near the sea to start the battle. Raising an eyebrow Zenith listened intently to the words of the Star Guardian as he spoke to the group of beings gathered to battle, he stated that the battle would begin down on the beach and hearing that Zenith was just about to teleport himself and Umbra down, however that was not to be the case!

Instantly a pair of shackles was placed around the wrist of Umbra and Zenith, as well as Sraxen and Merenwen, at first Zenith was not that concerned with them but what Vaul was to say next even shocked the Archangel of Life! "I have enchanted these to unlock the moment both partners are on the beach but at the same time restrict both flight and all magic so your only way down is to climb... or to fall. As soon as all four of you are over the edge the battle will commence. House Ossë will start to my left and House Holy Moon to my right." Were the words to slip by the lips of the Guardian of Stars, just hearing them caused Zenith to let out a small sigh as he turned to Umbra and said, “Well… there goes plan one of flying down or teleporting!” Once saying this Zenith tapped his forehead slightly with the hand not confined by the magic binding shackles, as he did this he gave a quick glance over towards Sraxen knowing it would not be long now before the pair were to meet in armed combat, two followers of Lothlómendil forced to battle against each other in order to advance in one of the most glorious events of Arda.

Trying not to let this though latch to tight to his mind Zenith once again looked at Umbra, his own eyes locking with hers before he stepped closer and began to whisper into the ear of the beautiful young half demon; “I do have another idea for this thing. You could maybe climb onto my back and keep yourself stable on my wings while I climb us down to the bottom. That way if anyone is to attack us I can continue lowering us down while you blast them with your Holy Blades special effect.” After he had finished saying this to Umbra Zenith moved his head back sending a small wink towards the woman. It would now be up to Umbra on how the team would progress down the mountain, whatever she deem a good idea Zenith would go along with as he would always trust Umbra with his life no matter what the situation.

It was surprising in some ways that Merenwen once again found herself in a tournament, especially after the emotional mess that the last one had put her in, but then, she was stronger then she had been during the last tournament. Sure, she had already learned the truth of herself before the last one, but it was that truth itself that had caused much of her weakness. She had been an emotional wreck seeking a way to train and release anger at the same time. This time she was fighting not to release rage, no, she was fighting in order to show that there was still strength in good. She had also decided to join in this fight because having spoken with Sraxen, they had decided together that they would be a good pair and could prove themselves. This tournament was different from the last one she had joined; she was not fighting alone, but instead would have to work in tandem with a partner, a partner whom she knew she could trust with her life.

As she sat in the carriage bouncing along the road she looked across to her partner. He was an imposing figure, even though his stature was not much, one could see the power in him. He was over a foot shorter then her, but then, he was a normal height for his kind while she was small for the kind she had grown up believing she was. A dwarf, one older then her current life, though all told she was older when her last life was taken into account. They had met some time ago and she had learned a lot about him. She may have been a Guardian, but she felt a great deal of respect for the dwarf who sat across from her. She knew that he would never give up, that he would never give into evil. She also knew that he had gained a spot of honor with the Goddess of life herself, and to do that was not a simple task. He was caring, he was strong, and she would stand beside him no matter how hard the fighting became.

Their first fight would not be easy for either of them, for she knew that she was not the only one who would find it difficult to be forced to fight against friends. Umbra was a friend, not a close friend per se, but a friend none the less. They had met when Merenwen had called out for snow and Umbra had come along as she had been playing with Tundra, her polar bear. Since then they had come across each other a few times, and each time Merenwen had found Umbra to be a kind and fun person. As for her second opponent, he was someone who she would never choose to fight against. Zenith had been a very good friend to her for a long time, had worked by her side in the past, and had gained her respect long before she knew of her powers. She had lost touch with him for a time, had been planning to get in touch with him again, but this was not how she wanted to meet up with him. She did not want to hurt him, and though she didn’t know many details she knew that Sraxen had some kind of relationship with him as well. It would be interesting to see how the fight progressed, how they would go about fighting each other when push came to shove.

As these thoughts ran through her head Merenwen began to get the sense of water being near by. She had not been privy to the location of their fight and had worried about all the possibilities, but as she felt the carriage begin to slow she relaxed a little. She heard Sraxen speak and merely nodded her head as she once again fell into thoughts about the duo she and Sraxen had been put up against. She had the ocean, the water that she could use to her advantage, but she wasn’t sure that she would be able to use it so in this instance. She would do what she had to do, but she did not want to hurt either Umbra or Zenith.

It was then that the carriage stopped and the lurching stop nearly threw Merenwen off of the seat that she had been riding on. When she regained her balance the light shocked her eyes after having been in the dark for so many days. She closed her eyes as the light slowly seeped through her eyelids and when she opened them again she was better able to adjust to the light. She followed Sraxen out of the carriage and out onto a cliff above the ocean. She was a little confused at first to find herself on the cliff, but when Vaul spoke the shock thrust into utter bewilderment. Her magic was being taken away and she would be forced to climb down the cliff without it. She looked down at herself and wished that she had her gloves with her, but the rules of the tournament had not allowed her to bring them along. She was in a light blue chemise with a dark blue bodice and brown pants. Normally her armor would have been over top of her clothing, but they had not allowed armor in this tournament. It felt odd not to be wearing her armor, but she had agreed to it for though her armor was a great help to her she trusted her partner and felt they could protect themselves without it. Still, it felt odd not having it there, and she would have to get used to not being able to use its magic.

Still looking down at her gear, and with her arm connected by a chain to her partner, she heard him ask if she had any ideas. She glanced up at him and thought through all of her gear. She had the gloves, but one pair would not allow them both to climb down. She also had a dagger tucked into her boot and her sword strapped to her side. Finally, she was wearing her Winter’s Embrace coat and she could feel it whipping about in the wind.

Looking into Sraxen’s eyes she said, “This is not going to be easy, and we will have to be diligent if we want to make it down safe. I have gloves made for climbing, but the rules of the tournament do not allow for them and so I do not have them along. I do have a dagger that could be used to stab into the mountain as an implement for climbing down though. I think the first thing we should do is to look over the edge, determine how steep the cliff is and how many possible foot and hand holes we can find. Then we can determine from there what we can use and how we will best be able to traverse down.” That said she glanced towards the cliff and then back down at the manacle that was robbing her of her powers. She was not happy about this turn of events, but she knew that between the two of them they would make it work. She slowly began towards the cliff in order to follow her own plan, and hoped that Sraxen would agree with what she had so far and follow.

Umbra leaned back in her seat as she rested her head on the back of the carriage chair. She had estimated that they were in these carriages for about four days, not that it was a BAD thing. Just, Umbra had a thing with claustrophobia that really made it hard to be in this carriage for four days straight without really resting and being able to walk around after a while. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to relax, not much was going to be happening for a while so she decided to enjoy the peace and quiet. She had entered a tournament for the first time. And this one was interesting enough; it was a team tournament; which meant that you not only had to worry about your enemy but your ally as well. Although, that was not much of a problem considering who she had been paired up with. She listened to the rustling of Zenith’s wings against the seat behind him, something was bugging him. She could smell something strange on his scent as he sat across from her on the long journey. They did not say much, well, he did not. She had tried to get him to talk but soon left him to his thoughts as they went along.
Umbra instead had been thinking up of strategies and things she knew about her opponents. The first was Lady Merenwen Coamenel, also known as the Guardian of Water under Lord Curin, the God of Nature. Lady Coamenel would be a challenge in itself seeing as how she was a Guardian, she knew that the Guardians were weakened somehow while they fought in the tournament to even the playing field but that still might not be enough. Merenwen and Umbra had met on previous occasions once or twice. She had even been seen at the Winter Solstice festival. Umbra then thought about the other opponent who was on Merenwen’s team. A Dwarf called Sraxen Stonesheild was also a member of the House of Osse. She had never met Sraxen before but she knew of him, once a member of the Keepers of the Sacred Deed. It was a guild headed by the Ascended Guardian of Holiness Avennian, a guild that was based on keeping the light and holiness in Arda strong. She knew that it would be a hard battle for her and Zenith. Although she still wondered why Zenith was acting so weird as of late.

Another thing that had bothered the young half demon was that there were no windows on the carriage, to provide for a surprise when they were about to battle. Umbra would have tried to peek out but she advised herself against it. She could hear the horses outside trip trapping on the ground outside. She then turned her thoughts to Zenith, what had been bothering him for the past few days? It really did not seem that bad at first when they joined up to form the House of the Holy Moon, but after they found out their opponents were Merenwen and Sraxen. Perhaps he was just concerned at the thought of battling a Guardian? She knew she was also worried about that but it somehow made sense when she thought of it. Finally she heard Zenith break the silence in the carriage with a sigh as she felt his eyes upon her. “Sorry I have not been very good company these four days Umbra, it’s just the thought of having to Sraxen really gets to me you know?” He said. She opened her eyes and looked at him for a moment then returned to her relaxed position. ‘So it is Sraxen who is to blame for Zenith’s quiet nature? I wonder what the story is. I will have to ask him sometime after the fight.’ She thought as she heard Zenith move around. Umbra rubbed her forehead a moment and then massaged her shoulder. The rules forbade armor in the tournament so she instead wore the uniform for her squad on the Moon Demon force. Her shirt was black and her jacket was of a silver sheen. She wore grey pants as well with her usual choice of boots as footwear. Her raven colored hair was cut once again to its favored length above her shoulders, it kept her hair out of her face but also gave her more of an adult look to the other demons who kept their hair cut short. “Don’t worry. Its alright.” She said.

Soon the carriage came to a stop. Zenith quickly grabbed his things and the duo waited for the carriage doors to be opened. The footman quickly opened the door to the carriage and Zenith stepped out. As soon as the door was opened Umbra smelled the harsh sting of salt in the air. They were near the ocean, not sure which one but nearby the ocean no doubt. Umbra stood up in the carriage and on cue her joints began popping like fireworks on the fourth of July in America. She winced for a moment as the sunlight hit her face as the hallelujah chorus was heard in the back of her mind as she leaned back, her spine cracking loudly for a few moments and she walked over to her place next to Zenith in front of another familiar guardian, Vaul. She wondered what the Guardian of the Stars had in store for the four fighters. She looked to her left where the others stood. Merenwen and Sraxen looked as ready as ever, Zenith not so much when it came to Sraxen and herself? Well, she was ready as she would ever be.

"Honorable ladies and gentlemen, allow me to welcome you to the Shar'in Cliffs of the Eastern Coast. As you are all aware, in a few moments a test will commence in which you will battle to you utmost with the aim of defeating your rivals. But you will not be alone; to win you each have chosen a partner whom you must trust with your very life and work with to display teamwork and co-operative battle styles."Vaul began. She looked over the cliff and could see the ocean waves as they came in and out."The battle will begin momentarily, but it will not be here... it will be down there. Your first test is to reach the beach without using magical means and... to ensure that you do... gentlemen..." Vaul said. Suddenly before Umbra could react a hand reached out and placed a shackle around her wrist. It was about two meters of chain and was connected to Zenith. Merenwen and Sraxen were also chained as well "I have enchanted these to unlock the moment both partners are on the beach but at the same time restrict both flight and all magic so your only way down is to climb... or to fall. As soon as all four of you are over the edge the battle will commence. House Ossë will start to my left and House Holy Moon to my right."Umbra sighed as she and Zenith walked to their starting point. Well… there goes plan one of flying down or teleporting!”He said and tapped his forehead with his free arm. She would have crossed her arms but did not want to restrain Zenith very much. She caught him looking over at the Dwarf. “Zenith? When this is over you’re going to have to tell me about that Dwarf over there. You know, Sraxen? You’ve been acting strange since the day we found out our opponents.” She said. “I do have another idea for this thing. You could maybe climb onto my back and keep yourself stable on my wings while I climb us down to the bottom. That way if anyone is to attack us I can continue lowering us down while you blast them with your Holy Blades special effect.” He said. Umbra thought for a moment. It would be a hard task to do but she might just be able to keep hold while he did the climbing. Umbra nodded. “Lets do it.” She said as she brought up her left leg and pulled out her dagger and moved behind Zenith and climbed on his back. “Ready when you are partner.”

His partner was smart to give the predicament some thought before they acted. Hasty maneuvers nearly always led to disastrous results, and the effects of those results were ever more potent in a tournament such as this. The judges were looking for ingenuity, teamwork, and deftness, not sloppy tactics and faulty schemes.

But even the best laid plans had a way of not working out. Sraxen considered their options for a moment, meditating on what Mere had said. She was right, it was a shame her gloves would be of no assistance here, as the judges had specifically prohibited the use of most armor. He agreed when she mentioned observing the slope of the cliff. He could only hope that it wasn't impossibly steep. Cautiously he peered over the edge of the cliff wall, the sight of the beach down below causing him to involuntarily gulp. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to decide the best and most efficient course of action.

Nothing.

"Bah, curse it," he finally said. "The daggers are a good idea. I'll be the guinea pig here and go down first, with you coming down just after me. I'll plan my footing cautiously, and you do the same. Use your daggers like you said, stab it right into the mountain. And pray to sweet Lothlómendil that we don't fall and kill ourselves. That would just be embarrassing."

Breathing a short prayer himself, he stared back at the rocky impasse. It wasn't the mountains or the stones that caused fear to spark up inside of him - these were things a Dwarf never feared. It was the height. "Height has never been my strong suit," he mumbled, hoping Merenwen would pardon the pun. Then, with a last resolute thought, he stretched his foot out over the vastness, winced, and placed it in a crag on the side of the precipice.

He had decided early on that moving downward in a straight line was not going to be feasible. The cliff was a puzzle and assessment of skill as much as any other twist the judges had hurled at the competitors in the other matches thus far. It was not meant to be easily solved. Sometimes, he would have to move left, right, and even up again to get to where he truly wanted to be: down. He kept this in mind as he firmly placed his weight on the small protrusion and peered around for the next step on the metaphorical ladder. He located, about two feet to his left and below about five inches, a crevice, a piece of the cliff that caved inwards. He could set his left foot into the crevice as his other foot steadied his balance on the crag. He motioned to Merenwen that he was moving and that she should be ready to relocate as well. With extreme prudence he began to switch positions. "Put your left foot in, take your right foot out," he said to himself, as if he needed reminding on what to do. The adrenaline literally shook him all about as sweat poured down his face. In a matter of seconds he had found the crevice and was now standing with his feet nearly a yard apart, making for a rather uncomfortable stretch. "This is why Dwarves prefer to be underground."

For all his grumbling and reservations, the pair made good time scaling the wall. Sraxen remained ahead of Merenwen, feeling out the cliff for weaknesses that they could exploit, while also putting himself in danger first. It wasn't that he didn't think the water guardian could take care of herself if she found trouble in the task, but he would rather put trust in his own luck than the luck of another. So far, there had been no grave concerns.

But suddenly, as he was planning to make another move from one cranny to another, the rocks began to slide below him. He felt his foot lose its holding in the wall, and he nearly panicked. He was able to control himself, however, and adjust to the problem. Letting out an "Eek!" - which must have sounded terribly pathetic coming from him - he quickly found another fracture to place his foot in. The ordeal was over and done with relatively quickly, but after that he was even more cautious than he had been before. The thought of dying was not a pleasant one.

Zenith thought upon what Umbra had said to him for a few moments, she wanted him to tell her about Sraxen. Of all the people Zenith had spoken to Umbra about he could hardly believe it to hear he had not told her about Sraxen however the angel would make sure his partner knew more of his past in due time, he did not want to have any secrets between himself and Umbra as they had both been through a lot together. To think that when Zenith had first met the half demonic woman he had thought she was evil, boy was he proved wrong! It was clear to anyway that Umbra had of course embraced a hidden light that was deep down within her heart and Zenith could not be happier at the fact, Umbra was part of his life and he was going to keep it that way no matter what.

It was not long before the Archangel of Life was snapped out of his thoughts by the words of his partner, it seemed that Umbra liked his idea about her climbing onto his back for the pair to scale down the cliff together. The young woman was just about to climb up onto Zeniths back when the angel then said; “Hold on one second Umbra ok? I will climb down a little first to make it easier for you to get on my back.” He paused for a moment before continuing on his train of thought “If you were to climb on my back just now there is a risk I could lose my footing when trying to start the climb downwards. I will also be at a better angle for you to climb on me by lowering myself a little.” After saying this Zenith winked and smiled towards Umbra to let her know he was feeling a little better.

Taking a few more steps towards the edge of the cliff, yet still within the two metre distance granted by the chain, the angel let out a deep sigh and looked over, it was a long way down but he knew he could trust Umbra with his life and with luck Umbra also trusted him with her life. Turning his body back round to face Umbra the angel nodded slightly as he pulled out a small bottle of liquid from a compartment within his belt. Opening the bottle Zenith raised it towards his lips and spoke once more in a somewhat playful sounding tone; “A little drink for the road!” Slowly the liquid flowed down the throat of the warrior and almost instantly Zenith could feel the liquids true effect take its toll upon his body, increasing his standard agility. With the increase in physical agility Zenith would, with any luck anyway, find it a little bit easier climbing down the cliff towards the inviting beach below.

All was set now, Zenith was ready to finally start his climb to the bottom but just before he stepped over the ledge of the cliff he gave a curious glance towards Sraxen and Merenwen, it looked as though Sraxen was going to start off their climbing but other than that Zenith had no idea what the this powerful team of opponents were going to do in order to place foot upon the beach safely. Yet another long breath of air was drawn into the lungs of Zenith as he kneeled down beside the cliff edge and slowly began to hang his legs off the side. Being somewhat tall for his age it was not long before Zeniths right foot came in contact with a small ledge that he was able to stable himself on. Thanks to the two metre long chain that linked him to Umbra however the angel was not able to descend very much farther, and so tilting his head up towards Umbra with a grin Zenith said; “Your carriage awaits Miss Umbra, you can climb on now.” He was trying to make his voice not sound to serious at that moment as he did not want Umbra to feel nervous about what they had to do, after all scaling a cliffside was a hard enough feet in its own but trying to do so while chained to another being was going to make things a whole lot worse.

He knew his magical abilities were sealed for the time being but as Zenith waited for Umbra to climb upon his back he could not help but worry about the fact that the elements could be the downfall of this section of the match, literally. If a strong enough wind were to pick up Zenith might be thrown from the cliff face with great force, while if the heavens were to open and allow a cascade of water to ravage down upon them all then the Archangel would find it increasingly difficult to keep grip on the walls surface without slipping to an untimely death. After all even though it was mainly sand below him Zenith knew well that a forceful fall from his current height would have a high risk of snapping his neck in two and abruptly ending his young life. Trying to let these thoughts of nervousness exit his mind Zenith could feel the soft stroke of the wind pass along his cheek and push his hair about, it was not overly powerful just yet but only time would tell if Umbra and Zenith would even make it to the battle ground of the beach in one piece.

When Merenwen looked over the cliff she couldn’t help but wish to hurt her judge just a little for putting them through such a predicament. He had brought her to water, to a place where she should have been given no difficulty, and then he had taken her powers away, made her nothing more then a powerless elf. No, that doesn’t fit, she thought to herself, even as an elf I had more power then now. It was frustrating. She should have been able to merely raise the water level up to the edge of the cliff, step on, and then slowly lower it again. Instead she was expected to climb down a cliff while connected to her partner. She shook her head at the whole situation and forced her eyes to focus on the cliff wall below her.

Her eyes started at the edge of the water where the waves crashed onto the beach in a never ending cycle of immense beauty. The crystalline blue waters shimmered under the intense heat of the sun and each wave left its own small mark upon the soft sands of the beach. She was drawn into the water for a moment, into her connection with it, but as she called to it and it did not respond she was reminded of the fact that her powers had been stripped. A shockwave ran through her body at the small sense of helplessness before she pulled herself back together and reminded herself why she was looking down from the cliff.

Her eyes trailed to the sand that glittered like shards of glass upon the ground. Even though she knew she was looking down at sand and that it would be soft below her feet, she couldn’t help but think of what would happen if it was glass and she were to fall. Even the sand would cause her great harm is she fell from her current height, but glass would do even greater damage. She could only hope that her climb down would be safe for she would need her strength in the fight to come, both physically and mentally as well.

From the sand, her eyes moved on to the bottom of the cliff almost directly below her. She couldn’t see very many footholds that they would be able to use, but then, she could not see much from her angle. She could see sharp rocks jutting out from the cliff wall, rocks that she knew would cause great harm if she were to slip and slam into them. They would not be able to go straight down from the point at which they were standing for the wall seemed to move into itself about halfway down. Instead they would have to move at an angle across the perilous cliff wall and hope that the rocks would not shift below their feet.

When she heard Sraxen speak, she listened intently as she searched for a safe path, something she was not seeing. She would have offered to go down first herself, but he offered and she would allow him to do so. She knew she could trust him and just hoped not to do anything that would place him in further danger. As he began to climb down she sat on the edge of the cliff and allowed her legs to hang over. She could feel the rocks jutting through her pants slightly, and didn’t even want to think about how it would feel when she had to grip them to climb down. Her hands would likely pay a precious price for the climb, but again, all she could hope was that her whole body didn’t pay.

When Sraxen had gotten a bodies length below her, Merenwen slowly turned and slid her right foot into a niche in the rocks a few feet below her. Her hands held tightly to the edge of the cliff as she set her foot and then moved her left foot to its own niche. With her body pressed tightly against the cliff she could feel the rocks pressed into her and a slight shiver of fear ran through her at the thought that were she to lose her grip for even a second she might fall. She would not have a lot of space to work as she had to keep within two meters of her partner. She began to chuckle a little at the length of the chain and in her mind she thought, I guess this is one case where being short is a good thing. The two meters of chain was enough more then her own height that she was not forced to climb right on top of him, she had about a half a foot of space to work with, and that space would be of a lot of help.

One thing that definitely would not help was the wind that seemed to be gliding along the cliff wall. She had to stay tight to the wall in order to ensure that the wind would not whip inside of her and cause her to lose her grip. It was a cold wind, picking up the chill from the water below, and every once in a while she could feel a mist travel with it up from the ocean. It was as if the ocean was calling to her, telling her to let go, but she wasn’t letting go yet. She would reach the water, when she did she would be home, but she would not fall.

As Merenwen moved down the cliff wall she could feel the sharp rocks biting into her fingers and palms. Sand was kicking up off the rocks with each movement and when the wind whipped it up into her face she had to concentrate heavily in order to keep herself from sneezing and throwing herself off balance. Each movement took more of her energy and her arms began to tire. It was then that she felt a small tug on the chain and heard her partner’s “Eek,” below her. Looking down, she could see that he had slipped slightly, but luckily he had regained his balance fairly quickly. A sigh of relief rushed through her body to see that he was ok, and she prayed that the same would not happen to her.

After fully regaining her composure from Sraxen’s slip, Merenwen slowly began moving further down the wall. She could feel scrapes forming on her hands and knew that before she reached the bottom they would be skinned raw. Even with the cold wind whipping about she could feel sweat forming on her face and dripping down into her eyes. Her eyes were beginning to sting and she was blinking to try and keep her vision sharp.

As sweat continued to drip into her eyes she had an increasingly hard time making out sturdy footholds below her. She took another step down, feeling about with her toes for a safe ledge to stand on. As she shifted her weight onto the newest ledge she felt the earth shift beneath her. The ledge disintegrated and she was left with only one hand holding onto the cliff. Her body swung into the wall and slammed with a solid impact. Her fingers could barely grip onto the wall and slowly they began to slip. Her heart began to race like a pack of antelope fleeing across the savanna from a lion and her eyes darted around for something to grab onto. Seeing no where to grab, she attempted to thrust her dagger into the mountain but hit a solid rock and the dagger slid by with a sharp squeal. She completely lost her grip, she was falling, she could not catch the wall and not only would she plummet, but she would drag her partner along with her. Merenwen was scared, there seemed to be nothing she could do to stop the inevitable, she would fall to her death at the edge of her own world. She could smell the salt water drifting towards her as her body began to plunge towards the ground…

Umbra backed off as Zenith told her to wait. “If you were to climb on my back just now there is a risk I could lose my footing when trying to start the climb downwards. I will also be at a better angle for you to climb on me by lowering myself a little.” He said. Umbra nodded and returned the smile. She wondered how the other team was doing. They were her opponents but to her they were also people she worried about. She always worried when people she cared about were in danger, even now she was a little worried about Zenith for if he got hurt on this wall she would have to continue the decent and was not quite certain how she could handle that with Zenith’s weight if she would end up to be the person catching them.

Umbra followed Zenith as he moved to the cliff. Reaching into his belt he pulled out a bottle and drank some of the liquid inside. “A little drink for the road!” He joked as he moved to start the climb down the cliff face. She turned and knelt by the cliff so he could get more free movement. “Your carriage awaits Miss Umbra, you can climb on now.” He joked. She smiled. “Thank you sir.” She said. She hoped that they could beat the cliff and be able to actually get to the ground safely without getting hurt. She climbed down and squared herself on Zenith’s back. “Lets do this.”

The House of Ossë may not have been the most excellent of rock climbers, but they were diligent and determined. Sraxen had led them down the wall thus far without incident, and Merenwen had proved to be more than capable of looking out for herself. It was only when the dwarf had had a slight slip when things seemed to turn south. He was now looking down at their destination, the sandy dunes of the eastern coast, and fear began to creep back into his already troubled mind. As a priority, caution came first now; winning the tournament was a distant second.

That's when he heard a body slam into the rock just above.

Merenwen, the full two meters above and behind him, was clinging to the face of the cliff with only her fingertips. Before he ever saw it, he knew it: she was going to slide down. In desperation she stabbed her dagger into the rocks, but it was to no avail. The weapon scraped against the stone and traced a small line in the wall, then followed its bearer downward.

He didn't even have time to think. He just had to react. Plummeting to the ground, Merenwen was helpless, and had no choice but to put her full faith in the healer. And he had no choice but to do something. Without even realizing what he was doing, he removed his right hand from the face of the cliff and extended his arm out to its full reach. He located within his sight another crevice a few inches lower on his right side. He quickly occupied it with his right foot. Simultaneously he relaxed his left arm, as it had been contracted while he was holding onto the cliff for dear life. At this point, he couldn't afford caution anymore, if Merenwen was to be saved. The stretching of his reach gave him those few precious inches that he needed to come close enough to the falling elf. In the blink of an eye, his grasp made contact with Merenwen's wrist.

The chain that bound them together was drawn as tight as it would allow, for it was Merenwen's right hand he had managed to grab hold of, while her chained left arm was still flailing from her near fall. It took all that was within him to hold her there and maintain his position on the wall, with the left side of his body supporting the both of them in the air. He belted out a gut wrenching scream, sweat pouring from the hand that held the elf. As soon as he had clutched her, he could hear a crack carry through the air. The sound resonated in his ear with an intensity he hadn't experienced since the war on the moon. He couldn't be certain, but he had a pretty good feeling that Merenwen's right shoulder had been dislocated during the jarring it had endured.

Sraxen gritted his teeth as he struggled to wade through the adrenaline and find his voice. "Hold on, Mere. I've got you."

He took another few moments to allow for both of them to catch their breath and process what had just occurred. The startling turn of events could nearly have cost them their very lives - they still had quite a ways to go before they reached the safety of the beach. He assured the elf maiden that he would take a look at her shoulder - if indeed it had been torn from its socket - once they reached the shore and he had regained his healing powers. For the time being, they would have to work together, more so than before, in order to scale the rest of the cliff. Her right arm would likely be useless for the duration of the climb; Sraxen would have to become her right side. He passed over top of her, then came down to her right side. The chain dangled between them; under these circumstances, it was no longer a barrier. They didn't have two meters to spare.

His gaze turned toward Umbra and Zenith, who were having considerably more luck with the task than they were having themselves. He exhaled heavily from his nose with purpose, then turned to his partner. "We'll make it down to that beach, I swear it to you. And when we do, you know what to do." With that, he resolved to climb the cliff together with the elf, holding onto Merenwen at her waist as she formed the left half, himself forming the right.