Rye glanced toward Emery as she took the blade on her arm. Before he could get to the canister, her fight went South and Jacobine rolled away. The explosion sent him back on his ass, dazing him momentarily. His ears were ringing and his head spinning so quickly that stars were circling him. Steeling himself, Rye bowed up to leap to his feet, intent on finding Emery. The air was filled with smoke, debris and fire, blocking his vision.<br/><br/>A body bumped into him but spun off into the murk. The curly hair on Rye's neck stood up. Something told him that he had brushed death but he was intent on finding Emery. For some reason, all he could think about was the promise he had made to her and in order for him to make love to her, she would need to be alive. One part of his brain stood back in opened mouth shock at the stupidity of focusing on that when blood, brains and gore was all around.<br/><br/>Rye's ears were still ringing and he didn't hear the approach of the person who stabbed him in the shoulder. A quick flash of metal caught his eye just in time to make him raise that shoulder, preventing being struck in the neck. His elbow reflexively slammed into a bony protuberance, a nose probably, before he waded through the smoke to find Emery.