Emrick shook his head, feeling the rough planks grab at his hair.  His mind cleared of the fog, thanks to the paladin's aura, though he didn't know its source yet.<br/><br/>But now he could think straight.  The mage didn't question the sudden change, but instead climbed to his feet.  His legs were unsteady, and his head pounded with a fierce headache as he eyed the carnage.<br/><br/><em>"Emrick?... on a scale of one to ten how are you doing over there?"</em><br/><br/>He turned to the voice, and saw the draenei fending off a couple of bog beasts.  There were bits and pieces of rotting vegetation smeared on her shield and scattered on the surrounding planks; she seemed to be doing fine.  Meanwhile, Talia was doing her best to keep the bog beast that had knocked Emrick down busy; that had to be taken care of first.  His gun had been thrown off his mare earlier, and he now slung it over his shoulder.<br/><br/>Emrick's mental acuity was rapidly returning, and his soul swelled with confidence at the sight of the armored paladin's attacks [Heroic Presence].  Smiling grimly at his newfound strength, Emrick called upon a spell he rarely used.  It was a summoning ritual, used to call a thrall of Ragnaros away from the Firelands and bind him to the Azerothian dimension.  Or Draenish, as the case may be.<br/><br/>Ancient words tumbled out of his mouth.  The language of Titans, long since edited and warped by mortal minds, still held power over the elements.  It was a crude way to summon them; they were never happy, but as long as Emrick remained in control, they were powerless.<br/><br/>The bog beast finally scored a hit on the horse: the blunt end of its right fist caught the mare on the side of her ribcage, not doing much damage, but throwing off her balance.  Talia's back legs jittered on the boardwalk, then slipped off the edge.  She was stuck in the mud, immobile and helpless.  Fortunately, Emrick had just finished the ritual.<br/><br/>Suddenly, a living flame erupted out of the fabric of existence.  The air rippled around it, and the boardwalk beneath it burst into flame in a cloud of smoke and steam.  It writhed and fluttered like an actual fire, but it quickly took on a definite shape: thick, broad torso with flames for muscles, and long trunk-like arms that were encircled with bands of molten metal.  Heat radiated off it, so much that Emrick was forced to take a step back.  The fire elemental peered at him, it's two eyes of liquid iron inspecting the human.  To his credit, the mage didn't flinch at all.  He met its gaze, then pointed at the bog beast.<br/><br/>Emrick was still smiling as the elemental turned on the bog beast - which was prepared to crush Talia's head - and smiled even broader when the mass of vegetation and mud burst into a cloud of steam and flame.  The bog creature didn't even have time to scream as the boardwalk beneath it buckled from the intense heat, and the blazing mass dropped into the water beneath.  The cloud of steam that erupted from the bog was explosive.  The fire elemental made a sound like burning wood popping: laughter.<br/><br/>"I'd say about eleven right now!" Emrick shouted back at the draenei, even as Duran made a comeback.  He couldn't ignore the stab of disappointment - and guilt - that shot through him when the warlock destroyed a bog beast from the inside out.  The mage had to admire the orc's stamina, though.  He would not have gotten back up after such a blow.<br/><br/>He waved the fire elemental to the side.  It complied, searing a path of blackened wood across the boardwalk so that Emrick could pass by.  Talia had climbed back up onto the boardwalk by now, and proceeded to gallop directly away from the fight, pausing at a safe distance to see if her master would follow.  Emrick did not, instead moving up to join Duran and the draenei.<br/><br/>Before he could make it to their company, twin bog beasts dropped down from above.  The shock of their weight on the boardwalk knocked Emrick onto his stomach, but his leather vest took the brunt of the blow.  He quickly rolled to his side, trying to get an eye on these new attackers.  Just as he did so, a branch whipped downwards, some of its twigs cutting gashes on Emrick's hand as he tried to roll away.  He gasped in pain and surprise, reflexively holding his hand to his chest as he climbed to his feet.  These bog beasts seemed bulkier, and they actually wielded weapons.  One of these branches was burning.  The bog beast tossed it into the marsh, and it hissed as it hit the water.  Since his fire elemental was nowhere to be found, Emrick figured that it had been scattered and banished by a single, strong blow.  At least that one was unarmed at the moment.<br/><br/>The mage scrambled backwards, trying to put distance between him and his assailants.  In doing so, he nearly bumped into Duran, and only then noticed that a fresh wave of the creatures was quickly approaching.  He tried to fight down the panic, remembering his companions.  With them here, this fight wouldn't be so one-sided.<br/><br/>The two bog beasts that had dropped from above were also the closest.  As they hopped over the hole the fire elemental had created, Emrick assessed his mana.  His head felt fogged, and it was harder for him to call upon the fire he had used so easily.  He needed rest, but his enemies wouldn't wait.  The mage did what he could: unslung his shotgun and checked the chamber.<br/><br/>It was loaded, so he hastily aimed at the bog beasts.  Knowing that the paladin was behind him made him confident, and Emrick's shaky grip steadied, taking the time to properly aim instead of firing blindly.  He pulled the clockwork trigger.  The bang was deafening, and the butt of the gun punched straight into his shoulder.  He leveled his weapon, cycled to the next bullet, and fired again before assessing his shots.<br/><br/>They had both hit, and had blown red-rimmed holes in the left bog beasts body.  It seemed irritated at the injuries, but it continued forward nonetheless.  Emrick reloaded and kept firing.