With the arrival of this new threat, Ava is going to cast a final Healing Word on herself to heal 7 hit points.

Seeing this attack on Dril, Ava is going to move within range and cast Moonbeam, directly down onto the horseman.

11 on a Failed Con save

Thallan's eyes narrow as his magic has no effect on the Little Girl,

"I suspect the Little Girl may be an illusion!"

As the flying Horseman descends from the sky Thallan changes his focus.

Seeing the Horseman attack Dril, Thallan tries again to move the hex, letting off another Eldritch Blast along side it.

Bonus Action: Move Hex to the Horseman, hexing Dexterity

Action: Cast Eldritch Blast at the Horseman - Attack: 6 - Damage: 10 force damage + 1 necrotic damage

Ospos will use his bonus action to cast Healing Word at Drill, if he's unconscious? 4

Otherwise he'll move to within 30ft of the girl and cast Suggestion, "Reveal your true form!" WIS save DC 13.

With more pressing matters at hand, Nean now spins around, fists still illuminated in the shimmering light of his soul knifes, and launches a mental attack against the horseman.

Mind Thrust: INT save of 13 - DMG: 9

Dril only just notices the huntsman and his embered steed before he feels the sharp pain in his torso. Taking no time to assess his wounds he runs toward the comfort of his group. It is not until he feels the small of his back getting wet that he realizes the severity of his wounds. Looking for a tree, Dril attempts to seek cover from his foe while he assesses his injuries. He is still quite aware of the danger at hand and will attempt to Dodge any attacks thrown his way.

Clermar drops his sword and readies an arrow with his bow. He takes aim at the horseman and fires. "Come down here and let me rip that hood off ya!"

Attack: 11 to hit, 11 piercing damage

ROUND 3

Ava: Radiant, silver light surrounds you momentarily, and then pours out of the black sky onto the attacker and his steed, but both seem to shrug off the brunt of the pain.

Liafial: You are surrounded by illusory duplicates, and the group of you maneuver behind a tree for cover, though the horseman seems unconcerned with you anyway.

Ospos: As you say the words, you again feel your magic have no affect on the girl. She simply rolls her eyes and begins to descend. As she does, her form becomes slightly more substantial. "Fine, fine. I'll show you." she says capriciously as she approaches.

Clermar: Your arrow flies just behind the horseman, as they speed through the air in pursuit of Dril.

Dril: Your little heart nearly pumps out of your chest as you run for your life, ducking between the underbrush.

Thallan: Your eldritch attack similarly goes wide, unable to hit the mounted warrior.

Nean: The stranger's head snaps in your direction as it just barely pushes the aching pain of your psychic assault away. (is that half damage for a successful save?)

Horseman: The figure seems dead set on pursuing Dril. Their steed carries them towards their quarry with terrifying speed, landing right next to the gnome and attempting to trample poor Dril with it's burning hooves. Dril is nimble however, and manages to avoid being stomped. With seeming annoyance, the hooded figure hops off their mount and tries to grab the little wizard. Despite a violent thrashing from Dril, the stranger manages to grab him up, tucking him under his arm and preparing to get back on his horse.

(Nope, its just a cantrip so he won't take damage on a success. Dril stated that he will try to run back to the group, so im guessing the horseman had to descend in range for an attack.)

Seeing the tiny figure of Dril being trampled down by the horseman, together with the riders arrogance to simply ignore the whole rest of the group flares some dangerous emotions within Nean. He makes his way towards the horseman, surprisingly rather pacing towards him instead of running. While covering the distance, the soul knife in his off hand appears to be dimming down slightly, while the sapphire blade extending his right fist suddenly increases in brightness (Bonus Action: Lethal Strike - 3 Psi Points). With a dead serious look in his eyes, Nean then swings the blade forwards, but targetting the horse instead of its rider to prevent him from escaping with Dril.

Action - Soul Knife vs AC: 15 DMG: 32

(If attacking the horse isn't possible or it dies before he gets to strike, Nean will instead target its Rider. In the unlikely case that the rider dies first, Nean wont attack the horse. If the duo somehow manages to get out of range, Nean will take another shot with a Mind Thrust (INT save 13, DMG: [roll]1d10[/roll)

"I said come here!"

Clermar rushes up to the dismounted horseman and attempts to knock them over to free Dril and keep them from escaping.

Athletics: 20

If the figure is knocked down, he drops his bow and readies his silvered longsword.

If he cannot make it to the horseman, Clermar will attempt a shot at the creature's arm holding Dril. (Disarm, Combat Options, DMG)

Attack: 13 DC against enemy Athletics or Acrobatics

If that variant option is not available, Clermar will dash over, drop his bow and ready his silvered longsword.

Ospos will move towards the horseman and try Suggestion again. "Release the gnome and pick on someone your own size!"

Dropping Moonbeam, Ava will attempt to cast Blindness/Deafness on the Horseman to try and blind him.

Dril somehow avoids the fiery, stamping feet of the rider's steed but is unable to fight the hunstsman off as he is bundled by this nightmare. While scooped up in his underarm Dril has a fleeting moment of clarity and presses his palms against the monster, the sense of deja vu uncanny...

Dril Misty Steps again, appearing and hiding behind Clermar.

Thallan see's Dril disappear from the Horseman's arms, and thinking quickly, he casts Silent Image, creating a duplicate of Dril.

The duplicate appears 10feet away from, but in front of the horseman, and then turns and runs off into the forest, looking frightened and panicked.

Thallan calls out after the duplicate,

"Run Dril, don't let him get you, we'll take care of this, ruffian!"

Action: Cast a Silent Image of Dril, appearing 10ft away from the Horseman and running off into the trees.

ROUND 4

Ava: Beneath his dark cowl, it's impossible to determine whether your spell takes effect or not, but based on their reactions to the swirling combat around them, they don't seem to be hindered.

Liafial: Your acrid magic burns away at both the rider and the steed, but it seems more an annoyance than a serious injury.

Ospos: The force of your words washes around the would be kidnapper, and they immediately drops Dril to the ground with a soft thud. As soon as this happens they shakes their head, appearing to come out of the spell.

Clermar: The enemy seems to fully come out of the charm just as you slam into them, and your momentum is checked with equal force. Readying your longsword, you now stand off with the ominous figure.

Dril: To others it appears as if you fall straight through the ground as you vanish instantly upon impact, reappearing behind the striking  armored figure of Clermar.

Thallan: The enemy's head turns briefly in the direction of your ruse, but seeing as the original Drill is still in their line of sight, they don't seem to be fooled.

Nean: The nightmarish steed whinnies and bucks violently as your psionic blade pierces it's form, sending agony shooting across it's nerves.

Horseman: The horse seems about to kick Nean, but a sharp hiss from it's rider seems to calm it down for the moment. The stranger then turns to survey the battlefield, expression obscured by the mask. Finally they speak, in a deep ravaged voice. "Color me surprised. Any one of you would fetch good coin. Damn shame you're all together, ... but that does make you much easier to find." The figure cautiously backs away from Clermar and hops on their horse. Suddenly, both of them seem to grow translucent and smoky for a second before fading out of existence.

Ghost: The spectral girl follows Ospos after his provocations, and seems about to lunge at him when she notices the rider make their exit. "Ugh really! You're giving up already? I was just about to have some fun! Come on! Come back! We can take em!" she becomes semi transparent again and flies off in a seemingly random direction, continuing to call after the rider until she is no longer visible between the trees.

INITIATIVE OVER

Thallan silently sends a message to Xandar to keep circling around above, keeping an ear out for anything.

"Well that was an interesting fight. My admiration for all of you has gone up several levels. Although our start, rushing in, was a little lacklustre."

"Is everyone ok? Dril you don't look the best, perhaps we should take some time to recover."

"Although I am loathe to spend more time out in this dark forest, I think we may want to recover a little before we continue."

"Another fight like that could be the end of us, or some of us anyway."

Looking at everyone Thallan asks,

"So, what do we want to do?"

Perception check for Xandar keeping watch: 8

Nean takes a long, deep breath and then dismisses his soul knifes. As the blue shimmering disappears, he turns around to Thallan with a concerned look on his face. "I understand where that is coming from, but i doubt taking a break right now would be wise. What he just told us means that we're marked, and we appear to be quite valuable targets. I fear that whatever nasty slavedriver that was, he'll be back. We'd be better off reaching any type of civilization before he's able to gather some companions and return for all of us. And i must admit, that trap surely wasn't set up poorly." His expression darkens as he speaks the last pair of words.

Thallan nods to Neans insights,

"You make very good points my friend. My concern was for those not in a good way to travel."

Turning to Ava,

"Ava, you appear to have restorative magic's at your disposal. Would you be able to help get Dril back in travelling condition?"

Getting a closer look at Ava Thallan adds,

"Are you ok my dear? You don't look in tip-top shape yourself."

Clermar begins collecting, wiping down and stowing his weapons, "A quick breather probably won't matter much. Collect ourselves for a moment and lick our wounds a bit. If these things are flying around on horses and vanishing into nothin', I doubt they won't be able to catch us if they want to."

Answering Thallan "I'm alright for now, thank you for your concern. I can do a quick bit of healing now for Dril, but I would like to use the last of my reserves to get us to a safe location as quickly and quietly as possible.

Ava walks over to Dril and uses Healing Hands, healing him for 4 hit points.

"If everyone could stay relatively close to me as we move, our movements will be better hidden for the remainder of the journey."

Ava will then cast Pass Without Trace on herself.

With the threat gone, at least momentarily, Dril collapses. Pulling the bolt out of his shoulder blade with a whimper, "I certainly do not want to remain here another minute!"

After Ava's healing touch, "Ava you are an angel, I'm feeling substantially better. I'm in shape enough to travel."