iron edge of the axe broke through and split into the blonde haired 'man's' flesh, forcing thick droplets of blood to spew forth from the open wound. Horrifically, Krieg let out not but a yelp as he regained his composure from the lighting fast attack, gripping his gauntlet hand onto Ragnvaldr's wrist and tearing it from his axe's handle with ease gripping his other tightly around the Oldegårdian's throat forcing him lower to the ground.

An arrogant smile stretched across the General lips as his darkened eyes bared down on the sputtering red-headed human. "You really think an insect like you could kill me? Pathetic..." he drawled lifting the similarly tall man by his throat and tossing him like a ragdoll at the feet of the rest of Ragnvaldr's companions. The floored man rubbed his neck as he unleashed a series of unruly, horrendously vicious coughs, watching as Krieg gripped his axe and pulled the weapon with a sickening squelch from his gaping wound, quickly pressing his large hand to try and to stop the bleeding.

Vex having barely recovered from her ordeal shot open one singular eye as realisation dawned on her. "He's the one, in league with the..." she grunted painfully as Krieg spat a glob of darkened blood from his mouth.

"Of course it was me." he coughed dropping the axe with a clatter to the floor as he stumbled to pick up his precious sword once more. "I-I championed you because you're a bunch of witless oafs, who no one gives to shites about. You've been lucky so far, but you have no idea what you've gotten yourself into." he hissed levelling his blade toward the intrepid Mercenaries. Even with his gushing wound, the man was confident he could still take on the party's superior numbers.

Clawing his way back to his feet Ragnvaldr stood at the forefront of the group, he to now completely unwilling to back down from the mainlanders challenge. Clenching his bare fists the enraged man went to charge once again only for Vax to come to his comrades aid. "I've got him." the Rouge announced leaping past his sister and launching a flurry of sharpened daggers, of which Krieg swung his sword and dashed them from the air, limply clattering to the floor beside Ragnvaldr's axe.

Twisting on his feet, the General growled and stormed off back through the darkened entrance way and into the next room. Fince being the only non-combatant cut his losses and scurried back up the steep wooden steps toward daylight, intent on informing the Sovereign of Krieg's betrayal. "Finesse, huh?" Keyleth uttered behind Vax as himself and the rest of Vox Machina charged into the unknown, with Ragnvaldr leading from the front, recovering his axe and bounding into the next room.

Rushing in, himself, Vax and Vex slid to a stop as they glanced around the alchemists lair, it's shelves lay stacked with a macabre series of jarred specimens and artefacts never before seen by any of them. "Krieg! Show yourself coward!" the dangerously enraged Oldegårdian yelled as his grip on his bloodied weapon increased tenfold. Darting their eyes to the ground for any sighs of a blood trial, their hearts dropped as no liquid lay spattered on the wooden floorboards. The General, seemingly, had all but vanished from existence.