Things had gone awry rather quickly. Just yesterday the White Lion forces were safely barricaded into their impenetrable cliffside fortress overlooking the slate grey water of the Sea of Broken Timbers and now the enemy were running amok and smoke choked the air. It was clear someone had thrown open the gates during the night and the situation looked dire indeed. The Red Dogs mercenaries had been assigned nearest the gate so Denezial was finding it difficult now to find a living brother in arms. Not that these humans were his brothers, far from it. But he knew a few of the Red Dogs and he had better chances of surviving this with them than the local troops which were little better than fisherman with roughly made blades.

Denezial fanned away the smoke from his eyes as best he could, he figured he was in what had been the local market. The stalls were all aflame now and bodies choked the narrow passages between them. The invading force had come through here and continued toward the palace, it was momentarily empty of all but him the faint moans of the wounded around his feet. He sniffed the air, wrinkled his nose, and tapped his forefinger to his cheekbone as he considered the best route to escape. A box rested under his arm, the rich walnut wood so dark it was near black and gold hinges and lock decorating this piece. The Red Dog Captain had been clear that if this went tits up, they were supposed to get the local lord's symbol of office out and hand it over to the king. The people were apparently worth little, the city was stone and could be rebuilt, but old traditions like this pendant could not.

The trick would be the actual escaping since Denezial did not fancy leaping off the wall and swimming away. He heard screams and clattering behind him and pressed his back to the wall, staying silent with the hopes of whoever was coming would merely not notice him. He slowly set the box on the ground between his booted feet and drew his bow in case they did see him. It would be the last thing they saw because Denezial had made up his mind years ago to survive this fun human game called war.

As tactics and plan was no-longer worth anything, Jason had almost abandoned all hope. "Damned bastards!" He shouted into the fray as his blade was drew into the stomach of a soldier, kicking him away, he entered a building and sneaked forwards beneath the windows,a hundred panic filled strategies flying across his mind as he heard cries and yells from in the battle, and time seemed to slow as he heard death. Locking the door he'd entered, he swung his blade out of the window, pleased to feel a solid hit on a head, it seemed "One less soldier" he pleasedly said to himself.

As he searched the building in hope of finding something useful,he grabbed a pot and threw it at advancing White Lions, and as a huge catapult stone smashed the roof louder than a dragon's roar, shaking Jason. A multitude of stone falling and dull hits told him the walls were breached.Now hope was abandoned, he ran outside and he glimpsed a black box before getting hit by an arrow;"ARGH!Ass!" he yelled, ripping off and splintering the arrow, grabbing his shield again. When he saw the elf, he was too angered and impatient in asking; "Who the hell-stupid archers-are you?!" He shouted in the direction of the elf, pressing against a pillar.

The elf blinked once as he put an arrow into the other man before responding dryly.
"I am regretful to have done that." The words sounded like an apology, the tone was of annoyance as if it was somehow the other's fault he had shot him. He shouldered his bow and lifted the box. It was rather heavy, the diamond in this diadem was nearly the size of a human's fist, no doubt part of the reason he was tasked with ensuring it returned to the king.
"However, all things considered, it shall not matter in the long run. Soon, you shall be deceased and I shall be far from here. Farewell, human." Enough of the box was visible to make it clear what the mercenary was carrying. About his thin neck he wore a single kerchief in deep red, a symbol of the mercenary group working for the city, The Red Dogs. Very few if any of them remained now but when the king hired them, it had been a group one hundred strong. He turned on his heel at the last moment, glancing toward the injured human.

"Would you be so courteous as to point me the direction of your crypts?" It was asked in so dry and calm a tone it was hard to believe this elf was speaking in the middle of an enormous battle as great stones slammed into the buildings in the districts around them, flames sprung up from anything wooden, and screams and shouting echoed back and forth.

"Oh you expect help from me?Insulting me,shooting an arrow!Go rot in that crypt!" He snarled. "Which for your information, is under the King's Palace." He added in a cold tone.Walking away, in the direction of the smashed wall, he turned in the direction of a sudden cry of help. "curse the gods, I have to help him?" He muttered,sneering- quickly walking over to him, he smirked at him; "So,I guess I'll have to help you.I'll escort you,nothing more." And raising his shield, he held it firm...

"Your information is timely, your anger is somewhat understandable given the current situation." He blinked almond shaped brown eyes at the show of human anger as the man began to trod away. He found humanity rather amusing in their emotions, they flared up like campfires at the smallest provocation. A bit like squirrels in that respect. He considered beneath the King's Palace as a difficult proposition, he had no illusions that they were looking for what he was carrying. Where is the first place they would check? The home of the local lord.

"So escorting me has nothing to do with you escaping the death that awaits you if you remain here? Well who am I to look a gift human in the mouth, lead on." He adjusted the heavy box on his arm and glanced around the demolished marketplace, eyes on the exits.

"We may wish to stick to alleyways or rooftops, how are you are climbing?"

"I'm fine at climbing, don't expect wonders.Elf." He sneered,Placing his shield down his back, and sheathed his blade with a metallic rasp-Followed by a quick scramble, but he got off as soon as he could. "Not ideal seeing the current situation.Let's go, I'd prefer to do this with you out of the way." he pronounced.Glancing at the ruining area, he ran forward to a shadowed bu slightly smoke-filled alley and beckoned the Elf, covering his nose, impatience flaming in him.

"I never expect wonders with humans, thus I am both rarely surprised and rarely disappointed." Denezial followed into the alley and wrinkled his nose at the smells of burning foodstuffs, spilled innards, and tar from the numerous missiles lobbed over the walls. He moved quietly, pausing when he heard the clank of armor around the front of a house they passed. Voices yelled back and forth and he could recognize them declaring this quarter of the city cleared. He tapped the other human on the shoulder to bid him pause, setting his finger to his own lips. He cocked his head toward the voices and listened then.

"So it is clear?"
"Aye, we got the locals herded into the warehouses to march 'em out of the city. Wheres the General?"
"He headed for the Palace, guess the boys claim they can't find the Diadem of Rightful Rule or something, he was pissier than a wet cat about it."
"That uh..merchant who threw the gate for us swore on his mum it was up there, there be hell to pay if it is missin." The two White Lions moved on and Denezial moved closer to Jason to whisper.

"If you get us both out of here and survive the journey south, you can be promised a portion of the reward for this. Now, get to climbing, we are too vulnerable on the ground." He looked around and climbed a trash barrel in a jump, turned and jumped lightly for the slate roof, crouching there before he could pull himself to the top of the house with one hand. He glanced back once to assure the other was following.

"Oh and try not to make noise."

Quickly moving up as well, he muttered while rolling his eyes; "Oh, I never thought of that."In a extremly sarcastic tone, sprinting across a rooftop, and doing a scramble-type leap across, prompting Denezial reluctantly though hastily, slightly crouching while a missile hit the ground near him. ("Daaamn...") and he showed Denezial to hurry.

The elf watched the human clambering about and resisted the urge to grin. Cocky humans invariably became dead humans within under a week. He would not be sharing his bounty if this one failed to survive out the travels south, he wondered inwardly if he would survive his way out of the city. He tapped the tiles before him with his boot as he went, checking for stability before jumping to the second roof and crouching briefly. He listened for the movement on the ground around them before tapping Jason on the shoulder.
"Continue to move, the worst mistake prey makes during the hunt is to hide. Always keep moving, I guarantee you they are looking for what is in this box." Despite the violence, the smoke, and the noise, he seemed to be finding his calm to some extent.