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Kin's eyes narrowed on the two young sages, his golden eyes studying them. These weaklings are sages? What is this crap? Kin thought to himself. These stupid kids, I could probably take them both at the same time.

"Sai, Damiano, what do you want to do?" Kin asked in a whisper. "These two look kinda weak for sages." Kin added even more quietly as he half covered his mouth.

"Hmm, I don't know about status, but I have a haunch that they're garbage in battle unless they're together. Just look at them, that's the only explanation. If we can separate them I bet we will have no problem." Kin whispered to Sai.

"What kind of combat are we using here?" Kin asked the two sages in a yell.

"It doesn't look like they're very threatening without a bound creature with them so it would be simple beating them if we got close. Just depends on what bound creature they have..." Kin spoke quietly to Sai.

"Intruder Combat." Kin shouted with a smirk as he usually did when Intruder Combat was issued.

Kin hit his gauntlets together with a clang and then summoned Vix from his summoning stone.

Vix slithered his way up Kin's right leg and then to his right arm as if he were some sort of equipment weapon wrapped around his right arm and leg, yet not restraining him.

((No worries, Raistlin. Extenuating circumstances are beyond your control. I cannot hold it against you that you are unable to post because it is none of your own fault. So long as I can be informed of the situation as soon as able. I really appreciate you keeping me in the loop as much as you can.))

"Intruder Combat it is, then." Sage Nathan said.

"Let's get this business started." Sage Noah said.

Sai stepped out, more towards the center of the decent sized ring. Stratus sinuously moved out from behind him, getting into position in front and to one side of his partner. He bunched himself up and raised his wings, ready to moved in any direction quickly and powerfully. Sai reached behind himself and drew his sword from its sheath. He deftly spun it around his hand and flipped it back down so that he was holding it in a forward grip. His staff remained clenched in his left hand, resting on the ground, though not for support this time. All of his weight was balanced on the forward portions of his feet, so that he was also ready to move in an instant.

The two Sages stepped out from behind the concealing podium. Simultaneously they slammed the butt end of their staves into the ground. Brilliant light emanated from the gem resting in the top of Sage Noahs staff. From Sage Nathans staff emanated darkness, which spread like a shadow made solid. Suddenly the light and the shadow both retreated back to their respective gems and standing in the spaces that had been concealed by them, next to the Sages stood two creatures.

Both creatures were leonine in shape, large lion like creatures. They both had massive bodies though, standing almost of a height with their partners. Bore had large wings folded against their bodies, and a spiraling horn protruding from the center of their foreheads. Their appearances matched their partners. One all black with blue eyes, the other solid white with red eyes. The two great cats loped forward so that they stood before their partners, almost concealing them.

"Begin."

((Holy cow Stoic, that's some incredible imagination, maybe I should leave more often xd . This is Vilya back story stuff, only the last few paragraphs are really important, but all of it's good to know.))

Back at the smith's shop Vilya couldn't believe her eyes. A tall, well built man stepped from behind the forge, when he caught sight of her he squinted and then his eyes widened in surprise.
"Vilya? is that really you?" he stepped forward, setting the old cloth he had been cleaning his hands with on a low table.
Vilya's brow furrowed and the moment he was close enough her fist flew and caught him in the stomach.
He was knocked back and stumbled against the table, supporting himself with one arm. Tura was rarely ever surprised, but her partner's seemingly random act of violence made her jump back.
"I-I suppose I deserve that...don't I?"
"And more." Vilya spat.
"You're looking well."
"Which is more than I can say for half our village. My mother and father included!"
At this the man's expression went completely blank and he dragged a chair to himself to collapse in it.
"My brother.."
Tura looked at her companion, ears laid back in concern. Vilya's fist was shaking at her side.
"You have no right to own those." she didn't even need to point to the arm-guards on the wall.
"The moment our village was in danger you fled...you're no warrior. I'm ashamed to call you my uncle."
The man seemed to shrink in his chair, he put a hand to his face to cover his eyes and perhaps some of the shame he felt. Vilya watched him, the anger boiling inside her burned away any sympathy she may have harboured for him.
"I know...I know I can't undo what was done. But if anyone need to hear this it is you, so..." he sighed, trying to suppress tears that were threatening to pour down his face. "Everyday I regret leaving...if there was anyway I could have stopped it I would have."
Vilya watched him, and felt Tura's calming presence at the back of her mind.
"Maybe." she said coldly.
There was a long pause. When he looked up at her he could barely meet her eyes.
"Life is so unfair sometimes...if the plague had come one year later your power would have been strong enough to dispel it completely."
Vilya blinked. "Power?" Everyone in her village knew she had next to no magical ability.
"Your power," he repeated, "You were one of the most gifted children in our village..." he trailed of as Vilya's puzzled look intensified.
"Tell me what happened."
Vilya glared at him, her anger still very present, but curiosity won in the end.
"I remember the beginning...but nothing after that. I remember you leaving, and I remember my mother catching the illness. beyond that...nothing."
"I see."
They talked for a while, and as they spoke Vilya's anger abated slowly. She grew more understanding of the fact that there was indeed nothing he could have done, with no magical power, nor knowledge in medicine. But the respect he had lost would take much longer to restore.
Vilya had credited her loss of memory to losing both her parents one after the other, but Callit (as her uncle was called) was not convinced.
"Its certainly a mystery..regardless of now, you had a huge potential. I've never heard of someone just losing their gift before. I'll bet its linked with the loss of your memory. Something else must have happened."
"Well, not that knowing that does me much good now, but I'm doing all right, I've already beaten three sages."
"With your creature's magical strength?"
Vilya gaped "How did you know Tura can use magic?"
Callit smiled a little, "I didn't, I just guessed. She carries herself like a magic weaver, there are a lot of those in this city. Speaking of which...why are you here?"
Vilya explained that she was traveling with a group of other combatants and in extension why she came to his shop in the first place.
Callit looked at the ruined blade she presented to him sadly.
"Well from the look of the damage they were junk anyway," he concluded. Vilya was about to protest angrily when he reached for a bundle of oiled cloth on a shelf beside him.
"Your blades were made by the smith who replaced me? Not that circumstances allowed you a better choice. Take these."
Vilya looked suspiciously at the proffered cloth before taking it and unwrapping two gleaming scimitars. They were very different from her own, the centres made from a special ore found only on the lands of her tribe. The cutting edges had been tempered to dragon scale hardness and shone brighter than the moon on a clear night.
The handles were plain, as were the blades, showing no intricate animals or plant decorations as Vilya's old blades had carried. On the right hilt was a place for a companion stone.
"Decorations can weaken the metal, allowing the blade to be more easily broken. Let me fix your gryphon's stone into the hilt...Its not that I am trying to make up for what happened." He said catching Vilya's distrusting look. "But you have more right than anyone to carry those swords."
Without a word Vilya took her old blade and carefully removed Tura's stone.

Out of the corner of Kin's eye, he saw what happened to Sai and his failed attack on the sage. What the hell? Kin thought as he dodged the swipes from the dark beast before him.

"This is annoying, screw the creature." Kin said in irritation. "Volo." Kin said, casting his trademark speed spell. With his newly obtained speed, Kin swiftly dodged past the dark lion like creature and darted at the other sage in an instant. Kin didn't care if the sage used the same technique on him as Sai, Kin assumed his speed and constant attacks would result in his victory regardless. Just a couple feet before reaching the sage, Kin extended his arm with Vix's body wrapped around it and Vix sprang at the sage with fangs thirsty for flesh.

I'll just wait for him to use that vanishing move of his and get him right after.

Sai could hear Vilya yell to him. Something about an energy sensing spell. He didn't know any offhand though, and reading one out of his spellbook was out of the question for the moment. He quickly sheathed his sword and took his staff up in both hands, whirling one way and then the other. He was hoping to keep the Sage and it's partner back while his vision recovered, though he had no idea how long that would take.

Stratus was still locked in combat with the white lion, claws and fangs lashing through the air. The great cat had more power than he did, but Stratus was faster and more agile. So far he had managed to avoid any serious hits, but with all his twisting and dodging he hadn't managed to land any serious hits of his own either.

During one of his more elaborate dodges Stratus could clearly see the white clad sage advancing on Sai. The Sage held his staff up over one shoulder like a long cudgel.

Stratus spoke into his partners mind.

Sai spun his staff, whirling it as he had been before, then quickly stepped to the left and spun his weapon towards the Sage. The Sage blinked in surprise, but managed to bring his own staff up in time to deflect the attack. Sai didn't stop there though, now that he knew where his adversary was he was going to press for all the advantage he could get. He closed on the Sage, squaring off against him. He spun and whirled his staff from side to side, striking high, low, left, and right in constant succession and in seemingly random patterns. The Sage kept up with him, deflecting his attacks, but was not quite quick enough to take the offensive away from the blinded Combatant.

As Kin neared the Sage his own shadow leapt up from the ground and, while darkening to pure opaque blackness, expanded around and surrounded him cutting off all light and trapping him in pitch blackness.

As the shadow surrounded Kin the Sage, Nathan darted to one side. Spinning his staff defensively in front of him he scrambled away from the strike of the combatant and his creature. Calming himself he slowed his breathing and relaxed his body. In order for his strategy to work he needed to remain completely silent. Yet at the same time he needed to act quickly, maintaining a shadow shape like that was continuously draining his energy, and though he was a Sage he still had a finite amount of energy. He began to concentrate, readying himself to cast his next spell, which he had to do without making a single sound.