John
Alrighty, we'll kick off in 2 hours

*The singing would grow louder as they made their way into the woods, both due to the shrinking distance between the two groups and the rising intensity of the ritual. The pace picked up and the incomprehensible words were coming faster and faster. Barely visible through all of the leaves and trees would be the tall flames of a bonfire. There had to be at least six singers by the sound of it.*
Luis
*Arthur quickly came to a pause. He had the smell of fire ingrained to his very core, and caught the scent of the bonfire before he saw it. There wasn't a clear viewpoint, and by the sound of the chants surrounding the fire it appeared that there was 6 cultists. Arthur was tempted to use his attacks and kill them all right now, but decided not to; there was someone to save. He had not see any sign of the victim, which struck Arthur as odd. This could mean that there was more than one cultist camp. Could the sacrifice possibly be taking place further into the woods?*
*Arthur turned to the two trailing behind him.*
"So, we've located one of the cultist camps," Arthur murmured in a hushed tone. "This could be one of many, but the victim isn't here. We need to locate them first, then come back and kill all of these cultists."
Mark
*Mevis's senses weren't as keen as Arthur's but he could hear the chanting and see the bits of flames of what he assumed to be a bonfire up ahead as well. Mevis looks over to the group.*
"So, I assume we are going to sneak around them then? How confident are you all in sneaking by? I may not be the best, but I think I could make it if we remain in the vegetation..."
Jose
Mai stayed quiet for a moment to think about the possibilities. She looked up and saw what could be a bonfire. She liked to make strategies, but this wasn't a game. She decided to follow what they wanted and act when needed. She turned toward Arthur and arched an eyebrow.

"Are you sure the victim isn't there?"
Luis
*Arthur was about to speak, but stopped himself. He hadn't confirmed if the victims were here or not, and he didn't want to take any chances.*
"I'm not entirely sure, but I didn't want to risk exposing ourselves to the cultists and the possibility of having them warn others. However, if we're able to take them out swiftly, I believe we can keep our cover down. I vote to eliminate them, not sure about you two."
*As he's saying this, Arthur casts Daggers of Flame twice on both of his hands, making sure to keep them far enough from the fauna so that they don't burn the entire forest down. He keeps them orbiting around his hands.*
"I'm ready to fire at them. Two shots to the head should just be about the trick."
John
*From where they were now standing, it appeared the cultists were arranged in a semicircle around the bonfire. Ten figures stood, shoulder to shoulder, with hoods throwing over their heads and hands held to their chests, all holding gold chalices. The chanting was getting louder and louder with every passing second. One of the figures seemed to be shaking during the ritual, writhing on their feet. The group was still in the brush of the forest, about 100ft away. If the they exited the forest, moving forward 40ft, they'd likely be seen by half of the robed figures.*
Mark
*Mevis doesn't like all this chanting. His instincts tell him to run away like the coward he is, but he digs his feet into the ground. He is going to stand his ground this time around.* 
"The cultists seem to be doing something, but I'm not sure what... I don't like to take brash actions, but I feel like if we don't take action now, we might be too late. So, my vote is to take them out right now, focusing on the one that is shaking first..." *Whispers Mevis as he channels his inner chi to concentrate the air around him to reinforce his arms and feet*
Jeffrey
``Mevis used Air Reinforcement Mana: 110/120 ``
Jose
Mai agreed with the two with a glance and a smirk on the corner of her lips. She adjusted her black coat, glancing to where the cultists were. She waited for the group to advance and go into to the direction.
Mai could go first, using some of her skills to get more information by looking from closer, but it would take to much risk for her and the group.

"I'm ready." She nodded at them.
Luis
*Arthur nodded his head, and aimed at the cultists. He was prepared and read to command his 8 daggers to shoot two at a time , towards the heads of each one. If there were 10 cultists, and 2 was enough to take down a singular one, then he could take out four cultists with his strike. He breathed in, and then was about to target the one writhing in pain; but he realized that if that were the kidnapped victim, then all they're struggles would've been for naught. Instead, he aimed for four cultists on the right side of the semicircle. He breathed in, and launched all of his daggers towards their heads.*

``` 8 Daggers of flame shot. Remaining Mana: 85/125 ```
John
*On the right side of the semicircle, three cultists would suddenly yell and fall in pain, some hit by two, two of them stuck by two daggers each, one struck with one, and the other unharmed. Eight simultaneous shots from 100ft away through thick vegetation was not an easy shot. Two of them would fall straight to the ground, as the third struck, only with a single dagger, would fall awkwardly, tumbling down on top of themselves. The remaining seven, except for the writhing one, would turn and stop singing immediately.* "Weapons!" *One would cry, raising his hand and producing a large ball of fire,* "They're killing us! In the trees!" *The six cultists would just begin their first steps towards the group.*
Jeffrey
*Following Arthur's lead, Mevis runs into the clearing with his arms and legs still reinforced with air. Mevis eyes the shaking cultist and mentally apologizing for what he is about to do. He couldn't risk the person being an actual cultists that was about to be taken over by something instead of a victim, so it would be best to act on the side of caution. Thus, Mevis would charge forward with his speedy/reinforced legs to push through the woods and using his training as a martial artists and quick reflexes, slips past two of the cultists and makes it 80 ft forward in total*
Jose
Mai walked toward the coming cultists. She slowly removed her coat, throwing it to the side. She was walking calmly and *In some kind of slow motion*(?), focusing and closing her eyes.
After some seconds, she began to shift into an adult-sized black panther with 2 meters long from nose to tail and light blue eyes. She now was running, later reaching the speed of 40km/h, still being able to reach 58km ( A real leopard has this speed), targeting one of the cultists. She focused her eyes on him, jumping and tackling him down to the ground. After the cultist falling, she bit and scratched his face and chest with her sharp claws, looking up at the others coming.

```Panther's Transformation ( 30 mana ) - Mana: 90/120```
Luis
*Arthur quickly moved to go on the offense with the other two. He casts Burn Up! On himself, increasing his running speed by 15 mph; now being able to reach 37 mph running speed. Using his left hand to quickly cast HellFire Blades, he has one of them circle behind his back, and commands the other to fly towards another one of the cultists running to assault Mai. Arthur then quickly draws his sword, and goes to another that he noticed out of the corner of the eye another cultist preparing to launch a large ball of fire at Arthur, so he quickly ran up to the cultist and slashed him horizontally with his sword.*
``` Burn Up! And Hellfire Blades cast. 5 mana passively regenerated. Remaining mana: 32.5/125 ```
John
*Two of the cultists would attempt to either grab or stab Mevis, both failing as he slipped between them. They turned and ran after him, both raising daggers over their heads as they chased him. The last cultist still shaking, would crouch down before fully standing, raising their hands over their head. A wooden stake would be pulled from the ground beneath them flying up in the air with a chain bolted to it, now falling to the ground.*

*The cultist wouldn't draw his sword fast enough, simply being taken to the ground and mauled as Mai tackled him, screaming all the while. Two cultists would run to their allies aid, one drawing a dagger and the other drawing a short sword. The one with a dagger, however, would be sent to the ground as Arthur's attack hit him squarely.*

*Arthur would reach the cultist before they could fire their fire attack, though his sword would strike armor beneath the robes, not quite cutting through him. The cultist would growl as his hood fell back, revealing a Canifor's face. He let go off the fire ball, launching squarely at Arthur as the cultist's robes caught fire.*
Jeffrey
*Mevis is not sure weather if this stake was summoned by the shaking cults own intentions or by the ritual, but in either case, it seems knocking them out would be the best choice. Mevis springs over with a flying kick that is still air reinforced toward the shaking cultist;s now exposed diaphragm to knock him out. If he succeeds, he will attempt to carry the cultist away from the floating stake in the air if it doesn't disappear, and into the woods*

`` 1 Mana Regenerated Mana 111/120 ``
Jose
Mai quickly jumped on the cultist with the short sword on his hand. She bit into his hand and ripped it off, hissing at the cultist on the ground. After that, she ran after her two companions, looking at the wooden stake floating. She decided to go with Mevis to help him if needed, she thought Arthur was able to take care of himself. 

Mai looked around to see if everything was okay and then looked up at Mevis flying kick and hoping he gets a successful kick.
Luis
*Arthur looked up, and saw the mage he attacked grimace only slightly in pain as the cultist's robe got set on fire. He saw a fireball leave his hand, and it hit Arthur square in the chest. The light plate armor, however, did it's job quite well, and on top of Arthur's proficiency in fire magic, he did not take a lot of damage from the attack. With Burn Up! Still in effect, this time he grabbed the remaining hellfire blade that was orbiting around him and swung it downwards, with a great amount of fury put into the strike. If the cultist got knocked down from the attack, he would continue pummeling it's dead body with the hilt of his steel sword. If not, he'd swing again until it died.*
John
*Mevis would face the hooded figure to strike their diaphragm, the target's hood would fall back once the kick landed, showing a female Macen's face. A cloth was wrapped around her mouth, and she'd hit the ground once struck, her hands flailing up, clearly chained together. He'd have no trouble lifting her, and could carry her off. However, the two cultists chasing Mevis would nearly be upon him, both still wielding their daggers.*

*The cultist Mai pounced on wouldn't go down so easy. As he hit the ground, he'd use his other hand to brace his sword and block Mai's teeth. He was strong enough to keep her from biting and killing him, at least for a few seconds.* "Help!" *He'd cry, clearly unable to keep this up.*

*The Canifor was without a helmet, so Arthur's sword would cut into his skull without much trouble. The cultist would gasp as he collapsed to the ground, all signs of life fading quickly.*
Jeffrey
*Mevis is not too pleased that the lady is still chained to the stake, but at the very least he is keeping her away from the cultists. Mevis turns around for a quick moment and channels chi around his leg before kicking it forward, launching a blast of air at the nearest cultists leg in hopes of tripping him and possibly trip the other cultist in a domino like fashion.* 
"Uh guys, I don't know how to get rid of this stake thing!" Yells Mevis in a panic
"You guys know how to deal with this?!"
Jose
Mai tried to get away from the cultists, but her mouth was trapped with the sword. If she transform into a human, the blade could cut her neck or head. She put her front paws on the cultists' chest, expanding her claws into it, hoping that it would kill him. At the moment she needed help or to think about an escape.
Luis
*Arthur was engulfed in his fury. How DARE this cultist assault him? How DARE he lay a hand on his body? Arthur, wrought with fury, pummeled the dead cultist's skull with the hilt of his sword still. Bathing the back of his blade with the blood of his foe, blinded with fury, he slammed his sword into the head of the cultist repeatedly until he could no longer make out the cultist's facial features. This cultist was the visible representation of a past, his past, that he wanted to keep buried for the rest of his lifetime. Cutting it down was not enough; he had to rip and tear until it was no more, until it was done. Finally stopping when the cultist's head was completely gone and shattered, he stood up and turned to the two cultists that were chasing Mevis constantly. Arthur got up, and with great speed, assaulted the two with a downward facing slash cutting from the right shoulder to the left leg.*
``` 5 mana regained. Remaining mana: 37.5 ```
John
*The cultist would, as planned, trip over Mevis' attack, though his compatriot wouldn't fall. Instead, the remaining cultist charged Mevis and attempted to slam the dagger into Mevis' chest, the attack coming overhead.*

"HHHHHRRRAAAAUUUGGGGHHH!" *Having the panther push its claws into his chest was incredibly painful for the cultist, making him lose his grip on the sword. He let go and started grabbing at Mai's paws, desperately trying to stop the pain somehow.*

*Taking his time with the now unidentifiable cult leader, Arthur would only be able to make distance to the fallen cultist in time. This one was meekly trying to stand, looking for where he dropped his dagger. He look up to Arthur, seeming like he was a bout to shout something. However, as Arthur was already on fire, immolating himself to kill him didn't make much sense. Instead, the cultist scrambled for his weapon.*
Jeffrey
*Mevis would shield the female in his arms before twisting his body sideways to minimize the area to be stabbed. However, he doesn't stop there. Using his knowledge of bodily physics as a martial artists, Mevis would attempt to use the forward momentum of the cultist and the backward momentum of Mevis carrying someone to shoulder plow the cultist, albeit wincing a bit as the dagger grazes Mevis' back*

``Mevis 1 minor injury sustained``

``Mevis 1 mana recovered 104.5/120``
Jose
Mai stared at the cultist, hissing at him while her claws stabbed deeper in his chest. After that she got off of him and ran toward Mevis and Arthur. When she arrived, she saw the woman and Mevis being stabbed. She ran toward them and looked up at Mevis, making a noise similar to a meow as a "Are you okay?". She looked at the dagger, hissing a bit at it and then looked at the female.
Luis
*Arthur looked down at the remaining cultist scrambling before his feet. He somehow felt a sick enjoyment of looking down on his enemy panicking in fear, and wanted to savor this feeling for just a bit longer. Silently, he kicked away the enemy's weapon even farther than it already was. Pinning the cultist to the ground with swift brutality, Arthur let the flames on his body lick the cultist's robes. Allowing the flames to spreas throughout the cultist's body, he watched as the cultist slowly churned out his last words in wicked agony; and Arthur enjoyed watching every second the cultist spent pleading in vain for help as his skin turned black. Having been satisfied enough, Arthur lifted his sword and drove it through the open mouth of the cultist, and got up, extinguishing the flames as he went.*
*He then went back to the group.*
John
*Mevis would feel the dagger slash across his back a moment before the cultist was knocked to the ground. The move was a good, considering his options, but the cultist was in no way disabled. He rose to his feet, breathing heavily as he looked around. All of his allies were killed.* "Immolation!" *The cultist began to catch fire, starting at his feet, and he sprinted towards Mevis now.*

*Mai would be closest to the last standing cultist, though tackling a flaming lunatic might not be the best idea. Her presence, at least, insured that the cultists had not grabbed his weapon before the suicidal charge.*

*The cultist that Arthur had tackled would only have one final word before death.* "Immolation!" *Even so, it would not change his fate, and as Arthur retrieved his weapon from the cultist's skull, he could clearly see the last one standing, rushing towards Mevis and the would-be sacrifice 10ft away.*
Jeffrey
*Even with the moderate injury, Mevis endures the pain and takes a crane stance and hopes he is quick enough to launch a sonic blast kick at the cultists running at him aiming for the head, He hopes this will be enough to knock him out for good*

``Sonic Blast used Mana 97/120``
Jose
Mai almost shifted into a human again but remembered she wasn't with her coat, so she waited till they returned to shift into a human again. She looked at Arthur with her light blue eyes, thinking on why he wanted to kill all of them and not to try bringing at least one alive.
Luis
*Arthur created 4 more flaming daggers and had three orbit his left hand, but sheathed his sword and dashed towards the remaining cultist with one flaming dagger in his right. Tackling the cultist to the ground, he whispered in his ear with silent, pure fury:*
"You're going to tell me right now what you were trying to do in this forest," He began. "Depending on how you answer, I might decide to make your death a painless one. Or perhaps not, maybe I'll let you go. Maybe not. Your life depends on your answer, and my patience grows short."
John
*Mevis' attack combined with Arthur's tackle would take the cultist down without much effort. However, the Immolation spell completed burned through the cultist, cooking him from the inside, out. Aside from the muffled voice of the saved sacrifice and the crackling bonfire, it would be somewhat quiet now.*

*Other than the sound of hoofbeats and clanking metal, coming from within the forest. It was likely the City Guard. If the party wanted to secure a prize beyond the kill bounties, they ought to act quickly.*

*There were 7 gold chalices, 6 daggers, 3 short swords, 3 salvageable sets of cultist robes, and the damaged armor of what appeared to be Almain Rivet. The guards would confiscate everything for 'study' soon. There was only a bout a turn of time to scavenge. If somebody wanted to take the Almain Rivet, they'd have to hide the body and therefore not collect the bounty for the kill.*