After an hour and a half at the abandoned camp, no other surprises arise. Lillen sits sullenly the enter time nursing her wound and Nev and Gentoa partake in a meal. Just as some of the troop are beginning to get restless, a distant scream breaks the silence, ending as abruptly as it started. Lillen looks concerned but does not leave her seat. Nev picks up Gentoa and carries her towards the cart, but not hurriedly or with alarm.

A few tense moments pass and then a wide variety of fiends slowly enter the abandoned camp from the north, south, and east. Rutterkin, abyssal wretches, imps, manes, bearded devils, nightmares and more that nobody recognizes close in on the group, stopping about 90 feet in a wide half circle around the group. Nev now clutches her daughter tightly, looking to the east as the only means of escape, but fearful that they cannot outrun all of the fiends in time.

Before such a decision can be made, a very large devil appears with a flash, accompanied by an acrid purple smoke.. Standing on two hooves, covered in spiked armor with a belt of skulls. "I am Bael," it says in a booming voice. "Lower your weapons and we shall talk."

Feytok doesn't put his axe down but lowers it from a raised stance and holds it in front of him, sideways about waist high.

(OOC: Well, good thing we got that short rest, because otherwise we'd be totally screwed against a limitless army of fiends! Bael totally won't see an action surge coming.)

Knowing he's very very far away from the comfy circus, Dog stands diagonally in front of Nev and Gentoa by the cart, shield up, and keeps his sword down. "There are worse things than talking."

He hopes that no one can see his eyes trying to widen out of his gaze, or every muscle he has tensing up.

Keyrie gets ready to transform should the need arise, her weapons are useless when she transforms so she is fine sheathing them. "We are listening Bael, speak."

Bael looks at Tock and then at Tyrol, who lowers his weapon.

"Good enough," he says, clearly unafraid of any of those weapons the circus troop holds. "Most of you are at least willing to listen to reason." The devil turns its bovine-like face toward Nev and her daughter, trembling under his gaze. "I offer you a bargain," the devil says, his voice rustling the leaves of the nearby trees. "You need never see a fiend, demon, or devil again in your life. Your child will not be taken from you and neither you nor she will not want for anything."

"What...what do you mean?" says Nev. "I don't understand."

Bael continues, ignoring her question. "On the southern coast of Alcion lives a warlock named Aucasia. She oversees a grand estate. She has no heirs nor any more students. Travel to her and she will take you in, oversee the education of the child, and you, Neventi, mother of Gentoa, will never again know the affairs of angels or devils."

Bael turns to Keyrie, Tyrol, Tock, Feytok, and Doggear, looking at them each in turn. "And you, protectors of the child, will be greatly rewarded for seeing the child safely to the warlock Aucasia. Prosperity, power, or status. All can be provided for you upon your completion of this simple task."

Nev holds her daughter tightly as she listens to the devil speak his offer. "But what do you demand in return?" she says, clarity and boldness in her voice.

"Mmm?" the devil says, turning back to Nev.

"What is the price of this comfort and security?" Nev says.

Bael nods, slowly. "Ah, yes. The price is that Aucasia will serve exclusively as the child's mentor and that both you and the child may not leave the warlock's estate until the child has reached the age of 21. After this, she will be allowed to travel anywhere in Alcion, as long as her assigned servant travels with her. These are the terms. If they are not upheld, the bargain is null and void and a new one must be struck."

Nev looks to the circus troop, uncertainty on her face. "Do we have any choice?"

"Well I could take out quite a few of them but not nearly all. I don't think asking for a show of good faith is out of line, and I wouldn't consider not killing us sufficient..."

Dog has... so many questions.

"What will you do if we agree? And what do you get out of this? Does this agreement involve signing something? Can you quantify prosperity, power, or status?" He really wants to ask "how long do we have to get the child to this Aucasia?" but he's holding back in the futile hope that he's found a loophole. He thinks back to the unicorn and wonders what it would think of this scenario.

If it's possible to insight check the devil, Dog is sure as hell going to try: 3

Keyrie is quiet for a moment. "Is it too much to ask for some time to talk amongst ourselves to decide?"

Bael looks at Dog, appearing to snort flame in response. "Foolish meat sack! Your part in this is merely due to convenience. We can find another to escort the child if need be."

The devil turns back to Nev. "Get the child to the warlock by the end of next summer and the deal will stand." He grits his pointed teeth. "For reasons beyond your ken, we cannot strike the bargain here in blood, or I would insist on that. No, the bargain must be between the mother Neventi and the warlock Aucasia. We can offer a blood oath of safe passage along the Long Road until the city of Pallaxus. Any deviation from the road before then or beyond Pallaxus that does not follow the road directly to Vallas where the warlock lives and our interference is not guaranteed."

The devil turns back to Dog. "Aucasia is wealthy, influential, and powerful in magic. She will be able to grant your grandest desire, should the child make it to her estate."

While this is an old and experienced devil and capable of terrible mistruths, Dog can tell that the devil's offer appears to be a real one.

Nev looks at Tock and Keyrie for help.

Bael, frustrated, slams his spiked club into the ground. "You would make your betters wait? You are dispensable! Only..."

The devil stops talking and snorts again, pawing at the ground with a hoof. "We await your answer but we will only wait for so long."

"I came to protect and escort the child, where the mother leads I will follow. "

(If we've headed to try to talk apart from Bael) "I agree -- we may as well see this through and escort them further. Maybe we can find out more on the way. And I don't know what choice we have. It seems we comply with his bargain and live another day, or don't, and end up killed and turned into fiends ourselves. Having until next summer is better than," he gulps, "not. Nev, it's up to you, though."

(Said only if we have gone away to talk amongst ourselves.)  "The way I see it as long as we travel on the road to this warlock the deal will be upheld and they will not cause us trouble. We can use that time to think of other solutions to the problem. We have until next summer to get there which should give us some time to find out more about this Aucasia. The way I see it we lose nothing from going on with the start of the deal at least beginning to travel to Pallaxus, if we decide to deviate of course from there." Keyrie shrugs, "We will have had some days to gather our strength and prepare to make a stand against any fiends that should come our way."

(How long do we have until next summer?)

The tension mounts as the dark clouds split and a bright beam of sunlight pierces the gloomy camp. Only the sound of Gentoa crying can be heard, but even that ceases as a gentle music wafts across the camp. A giant angel with four wings descends, as if following a road of light. In her hand is a giant sword. It is a solar, easily 9 feet tall. Her hair is golden and flowing past her shoulders. Her bright blue eyes contrast with her fair, perfect skin. The flaps of her wings push cool autumn air past the protectors as she touches down with a solid thud.

From the west, coming through the trees and , in some cases, floating over the trees, unicorns devas, and pegasi enter the camp, meeting the fiends in an opposing, but smaller, half-circle. One of the unicorns steps forward, somewhat bloodied and the worse-for-wear, nodding at the circus troop.

"Aeryx," says Bael with a sneer. "Always a pleasure."

"I wish I could say the same," the solar says coolly. "I hope I am interrupting something."

Aeryx turns to Nev and her protectors. "I am Aeryx, the Music-Bearer. Neventi, mother of Gentoa, daughter of Milil, my sire sends his greetings."

Nev purses her lips. "Cold greetings," she says. "Since he is too busy to come himself."

The solar smiles sympathetically. "It is better if the gods leave this conflict to us."

"We have no conflict," Bael says, or rather shouts. "We are merely contracting a bargain."

Aeryx looks at Bael with a steely gaze. "That is most wise," she says. Turning to Nev, she says, "You may throw your lot in with fiends, but there are better options."

Bael slams his spiked club into the ground.

Aeryx continues, "Bael's bargain is a clever one. It means the devils and the celestials can keep the peace by not being directly involved in the fate of Milil's daughter. I propose a similar solution. Neventi, travel to the capital of Alcion. The mage king is a good man. His kingdom has no heir and he has decreed that only an adopted child will inherit his kingdom. He will accept Gentoa as his heir, raise her as his daughter."

Nev, still with pursed lips, says, "This is Milil's will?"

Aeryx smiles on Nev kindly, "No, it cannot be. It must be the will of mortals to decide Gentoa's fate."

"And what," Nev says, "is the price of my daughter's fate should I pledge her to be the future queen of Alcion?"

Aeryx pauses and Bael smiles wickedly. Eventually, the solar speaks. "The good king requires the adoption of his heir to be complete," she says. "You will no longer be the mother of Gentoa." The giant angel is quick to add, "You may still be her caregiver and you will be taken care of in every way by the king."

Nev gives a frustrated sigh. "But by all appearances, Gentoa will be the daughter of the king."

Aeryx does not respond, although Bael chuckles. The decision hangs heavy in the air until Bael finally speaks. "If you opt for anything except my bargain, then the hells offer no protection for the mother of the child."

Aeryx' voice booms in response, "Then you risk the peace between the heavens and the hells!"

"You would stop me? I think not!" Bael raises his club and smashes a nearby tree stump into splinters.

"If the hells will not honor the accord, then I will slay every last devil and demon until peace is all that is left," the solar roars, raising her sword above the trees.

Bael roars in return, and then all hell breaks loose. Fiends and demons and devils charge at the unicorns and angels, who return the charge, clashing in a wave of bodies, magic, fire, and blood around the party.

Keyrie:

 "Get on my back for now lets just get out of here and figure out everything later!" Keyrie will then use one of the uses of Wild Shape she got back with her short rest to turn into an Elk and kneel down to help them get on her back.

A tree branch bursting into flame over her head encourages Neventi to act quickly, climbing onto Keyrie's back with Gentoa cowering in her arms. They flee the melee without being stopped in the direction of the celestials, westward back in the direction of the Long Road.

Tock bolts towards the celestials, hides quickly behind the nearest object (stealth check: 18), picks a target that a unicorn is fighting, shoots it and then keeps running after the elk.

 Attack: 19 Damage: 10

Feytok will run and do his best to keep up with the elk in case of attack.

Dog follows FeyTok's lead and runs on the elk's flank, readying an attack should it be needed to clear their way. If Nev or Gentoa look like they will fall from the elk, his large hands are ready to take the load.

In all the chaos, he as a strange series of thoughts: the fates of the mule and the cart and Lillen the bandit and also that he's happy he at least got the valuable things into the bag of holding. He runs.

( ooc I almost went for the mule too. Didn't want to risk, well anything)