He nodded shortly, slung his bow over his back and climbed up the rope at a speed that belied his age and recent injuries.  Arrows began flying down in a steady rhythm the moment he had reached the rooftop.

“Kain.  My hand’s broken and I can’t climb with it like this.”  Callindra stepped in to take his place and he retreated as though they’d practiced the maneuver for years.  He really did have a talent for reading body language.

A hot flash of fire tore through her arm and down her hand as he slapped an ungentle spell into her.  It wasn’t much, but it repaired enough of the damage that she could swing Shadowsliver properly again.

“You get up there next Kain.”  She ordered, “Holt was tortured and I don’t know how much longer he can stay on his feet.”  He frowned, but nodded and obeyed.

“I can climb faster sister.”  Vilhylm said, “You go next.”  He was wearing his brutish mask, muscles bunching as he bashed a huge fist into a guard hard enough to dent his breastplate.

“You go.”  She snapped.  “I’m grabbing Cronos and jumping.”

He looked at her but glanced at their brother and headed for the rope.  She flung herself to where Cronos still moved through the steps of a lethal dance and flung Shadowsliver about his middle.  The chain of her sword wrapped underneath his armpits, slicing through three Taken as it flashed in front of him before the hilt slapped into her palm and she tore a spell from the Weave.

An explosion of wind blasted them into the air in a barely controlled tumble.  She was dimly aware of Taken being tossed aside like twigs from the force of the winds that bore them aloft, but it was hard to concentrate.  For some reason she knew she was supposed to be paying attention to something but whatever it was couldn’t be that important if she couldn’t remember it.

Her unconscious body tumbled to the rooftop and rolled to a stop at Reed’s feet.  He stared at her in shocked surprise.  “She’s insane.”

“Time to go.”  Cronos said, picking up his sister’s supine form and fumbling to keep from being cut by her sword.  Her hand still clutched it in a white knuckled grip.

They watched below as the Taken swarmed over the guards below, burying them in a wave of rotting limbs and emerald green ichor.  Behind where the horde had come from, the city burned.  Screams of terrified people came to them over the sound of combat and flames.

“We gotta get to the dock.”  Reed said, pointing over the rooftops.  “With a little luck we can get there sticking to the rooftops.”  He led the way over a zigzagging set of plank bridges and dizzying leaps from one building to another.

When they reached a warehouse near a run-down dock.  A few small craft were moored there, one of which was a small flat-bottomed river boat with oars and a square sail.  Perhaps a hundred Taken milled about aimlessly in the open are between them and the dock.

Cronos set Callindra down on the rooftop and turned to Kain.  “Can you revive her?  I can’t carry her and fight at the same time.”

The hulking half orc reached out and brushed fingers across Callindra’s forehead.  A few of her wounds stopped bleeding, but others still slowly leaked through scabs that hadn’t quite closed.  Kain slumped, breathing hard and shook his head.  “That’s all I can do.”

“It’s enough.”  Callindra rasped, her eyes flickering open.  “I just overdid.  Too much magic.”

“You had many deep cuts.”  Kain said, “I managed to stop most of the bleeding.”

She looked down at the slashes through her armor and into her side and legs.  When had she gotten cut?  “Where are we?  What is going on?  Is everyone all right?”

“We’re at the docks.”  Reed said in a low voice, “Keep your damn voice down, there’s a hundred or so of those things down there.  They haven’t seen us yet, but if you don’t shut up they will.”

Callindra looked over the edge of the roof and fought off despair.  There was no way they could get through all the Taken below without being seen and fighting them all wasn’t an option.  The light of the city burning behind them was throwing tall shadows across the dockside, but it was also illuminating the river.