Events escalated all too quickly, the guard she had abused earlier with a cheap one-two assault whilst bound, stepped forwards and brandished his blade towards her – he was ready for revenge and meant to take it. Behind her she could hear Fallon scrambling about, levering herself up from the floor she hoped and ready to fight. If she wasn’t then there would be a fight upon her hands, a losing battle perhaps and just maybe she would be able to kill or injure the remaining threats enough to allow Fallon to escape. She swallowed and prepared to parry and counter in an attempt to nullify one before the battle commenced in earnest. She swallowed, she was in unknown territory now. Never before had she stood watch and stared death so avidly in the eyes, prepared to rip its damned throat out at any cost. Her life had been long by Sunberthian standards but she had yet to be willing to give her life in protection of another – in defence of a dream.
She knew how it felt now though, the words spoken between the two of them hammering home within her like a thrust lance. It wasn’t about her father anymore, she had slammed him through a rotten wall and took his blade without a second thought. It would have amused her had it not been so raw, if it hadn’t felt right. The flickering of fate caused a shiver and fear came, her mouth drying to become akin to s desert. The tread of a boot, the shining of a blade as Fallon stepped in front of her and the guard fell before her clinically precise thrusting, falling to the floor as he was shrugged off. She blinked at the words, they seeped in slowly through the haze of her mind. Her mouth opened, surprise vying with horror at what played out before her.
“No, no you can’t!” the whisper was out of her mouth before sense could stop it from issuing forth. A lot could be read from the tone, her caring concern clear. Gaze snapped to Fallon’s briefly before the other looked away, she couldn’t read what was within that look.
Her mind rebelled, writhed and seethed under the offer that had not been agreed. That she would never have consented to. She had made her position clear, if death was to come to them then she would be the one to fall – it was her vendetta and she had asked Fallon for assistance to see it done. But now…now she was being asked to merely stand back and watch as it played out before her. A bystander, with only the other at risk. She shook her head vehemently, she still refused to acknowledge that the events were even taking place – she hadn’t even moved from her readied stance such was her shock. She stayed there, a statue amidst the death, even as Fallon retrieved her second tulwar from its resting place with a grunt of effort.
This can’t be happening! Why? Why would you…oh for petch…for me. You…bitch! If you die I’m as good as dead anyway! You think they’ll let me go? After killing the others I’ll be lucky not to be raped to within an inch of my life before being broken to pieces…slowly she couldn’t sustain the anger, not in the face of such an act.
Laughter amidst the shifting of falling wood clattering to stone flooring, rich and deep it dispelled the tension and her father stepped from the wreckage through the door and not the hole, to slam it behind his with a broad grin. Against all sense of style it fell backwards and the creaking groan of strained construction greeted all ears as the wall collapsed backwards into the smaller room Markus had called his home. The guards laughed nervously after the noise had ceased and knew the rest of the building wasn’t about to follow suit. Blades lowered but were not sheathed and Zandelia’s shoulders sagged, her resistance was gone as strength faded with the loss of blood. She was tired, so tired.
Pointless…it was all pointless. I won’t even need a shovel because I’d deserve whatever happened to me if she falls. This…this is what vengeance brings me. A hollow place…cold…worthless. So be it she thought.
“So be it!” her father echoed her sentiments outwardly as he drew his broadsword and a dagger slipped into his left hand, “don’t worry daughter. You have the look of infatuation about you. I’ll kill her swiftly to ease your pain. Your face says it all. Used to look like that when we took her favourite toys away you know. To the death? ” he asked Fallon casually and Zandelia flinched at the words.
"You should know that lone wolves tend not to snap at bears. For good reason. They tend to die. Are you ready to learn that Bitzer?" he mocked her as he looked at the guards that remained, "know that your sacrifice won't be in vain though. We'll have a new pelt and a new pet too" and the men laughed, sickeningly.
“So be it” she whispered into the ensuing silence before she took both of her tonfa into her left hand in defeat and stepped backwards.
She stayed between Fallon and the two guards that remained. She noticed that the back door was being blocked by the body of the one she had kicked in its direction. Perhaps she had been slammed into it, knocked unconscious. She could hear no pressure upon it, no baying of hounds. Perhaps their owner had fled into the night with them, it didn’t matter anymore. She sighed and came to Fallon’s side, resting her free hand upon the shoulder to impart a gentle squeeze. She eyed her now still enemies with suspicion and vowed to kill them if it even smelt as if they were about to intervene.
The die is cast, but where it lands only Lhex knows. But I'm damned if I'm not going to try and cheat our way out of this. If I can she told herself mournfully as she looked upon Fallon, arms trembling with fear.
There was a suspicion that this could be a ploy, another hastily conjured gambit to try and tease out an opportunity but from the set of Fallon's jaw and the way she refused to fully meet her gaze the hope was a small one, flickering rapidly towards being extinguished. If there were to be such events they would have to come from her end of this abbatoire. She stayed out of striking range of the enemy and gripped her waepons grimly as adrenalie faded and the pain began to creep inwards. The bleeding had slowed to a trickle now, gushing slightly more when she moved.She pressed her hand to her sliced ribs firmly with a sharp intake of breath as she sought to aid the clotting process with pressure.
She could only watch.
She knew how it felt now though, the words spoken between the two of them hammering home within her like a thrust lance. It wasn’t about her father anymore, she had slammed him through a rotten wall and took his blade without a second thought. It would have amused her had it not been so raw, if it hadn’t felt right. The flickering of fate caused a shiver and fear came, her mouth drying to become akin to s desert. The tread of a boot, the shining of a blade as Fallon stepped in front of her and the guard fell before her clinically precise thrusting, falling to the floor as he was shrugged off. She blinked at the words, they seeped in slowly through the haze of her mind. Her mouth opened, surprise vying with horror at what played out before her.
“No, no you can’t!” the whisper was out of her mouth before sense could stop it from issuing forth. A lot could be read from the tone, her caring concern clear. Gaze snapped to Fallon’s briefly before the other looked away, she couldn’t read what was within that look.
Her mind rebelled, writhed and seethed under the offer that had not been agreed. That she would never have consented to. She had made her position clear, if death was to come to them then she would be the one to fall – it was her vendetta and she had asked Fallon for assistance to see it done. But now…now she was being asked to merely stand back and watch as it played out before her. A bystander, with only the other at risk. She shook her head vehemently, she still refused to acknowledge that the events were even taking place – she hadn’t even moved from her readied stance such was her shock. She stayed there, a statue amidst the death, even as Fallon retrieved her second tulwar from its resting place with a grunt of effort.
This can’t be happening! Why? Why would you…oh for petch…for me. You…bitch! If you die I’m as good as dead anyway! You think they’ll let me go? After killing the others I’ll be lucky not to be raped to within an inch of my life before being broken to pieces…slowly she couldn’t sustain the anger, not in the face of such an act.
Laughter amidst the shifting of falling wood clattering to stone flooring, rich and deep it dispelled the tension and her father stepped from the wreckage through the door and not the hole, to slam it behind his with a broad grin. Against all sense of style it fell backwards and the creaking groan of strained construction greeted all ears as the wall collapsed backwards into the smaller room Markus had called his home. The guards laughed nervously after the noise had ceased and knew the rest of the building wasn’t about to follow suit. Blades lowered but were not sheathed and Zandelia’s shoulders sagged, her resistance was gone as strength faded with the loss of blood. She was tired, so tired.
Pointless…it was all pointless. I won’t even need a shovel because I’d deserve whatever happened to me if she falls. This…this is what vengeance brings me. A hollow place…cold…worthless. So be it she thought.
“So be it!” her father echoed her sentiments outwardly as he drew his broadsword and a dagger slipped into his left hand, “don’t worry daughter. You have the look of infatuation about you. I’ll kill her swiftly to ease your pain. Your face says it all. Used to look like that when we took her favourite toys away you know. To the death? ” he asked Fallon casually and Zandelia flinched at the words.
"You should know that lone wolves tend not to snap at bears. For good reason. They tend to die. Are you ready to learn that Bitzer?" he mocked her as he looked at the guards that remained, "know that your sacrifice won't be in vain though. We'll have a new pelt and a new pet too" and the men laughed, sickeningly.
“So be it” she whispered into the ensuing silence before she took both of her tonfa into her left hand in defeat and stepped backwards.
She stayed between Fallon and the two guards that remained. She noticed that the back door was being blocked by the body of the one she had kicked in its direction. Perhaps she had been slammed into it, knocked unconscious. She could hear no pressure upon it, no baying of hounds. Perhaps their owner had fled into the night with them, it didn’t matter anymore. She sighed and came to Fallon’s side, resting her free hand upon the shoulder to impart a gentle squeeze. She eyed her now still enemies with suspicion and vowed to kill them if it even smelt as if they were about to intervene.
The die is cast, but where it lands only Lhex knows. But I'm damned if I'm not going to try and cheat our way out of this. If I can she told herself mournfully as she looked upon Fallon, arms trembling with fear.
There was a suspicion that this could be a ploy, another hastily conjured gambit to try and tease out an opportunity but from the set of Fallon's jaw and the way she refused to fully meet her gaze the hope was a small one, flickering rapidly towards being extinguished. If there were to be such events they would have to come from her end of this abbatoire. She stayed out of striking range of the enemy and gripped her waepons grimly as adrenalie faded and the pain began to creep inwards. The bleeding had slowed to a trickle now, gushing slightly more when she moved.She pressed her hand to her sliced ribs firmly with a sharp intake of breath as she sought to aid the clotting process with pressure.
She could only watch.