Private Tales Tango in the Dark

Valencia stormed out of the Black Boar Free Company's barracks, fuming as she darted through the side streets. She'd come to the mercenary band's offices to offer her services to train their men. The trip had taken hours, as she was yet unfamiliar with this section of the Inner City, and yet more were wasted when the mercenary captain, a burly, well-groomed Anirian man in his prime, left her waiting out in the hall for ages before finally deigning to entertain her in his office. Though she no longer wanted anything to do with her reputation, she was of the idea that her fellow Anirians would've known her in passing, given her notoriety back then. She was, sadly, mistaken, as the Captain cared little for her request. He laughed her out to the courtyard where the men were drilling before suggesting with a smug smirk that they could teach her a thing or two about handling their 'weapons' instead, eliciting a bout of uproarious laughter as the men and women training began to jeer. She was absolutely indignant at this humiliation, but kept her anger in check for the moment as she silently made her exit.

As she approached the door to the street however, one of the men had come up behind her and made a pass at her, the result of which was stunned silence from the jeering crowd as the man was floored with blinding speed, the audible crack of hardwood against bone echoing through the hall as she whipped her walking stick around in a single blow to the side of his neck. He slumped onto the ground, the pain and shock knocking him unconscious almost instantaneously, his head hanging limply to the side at an unnatural angle. Without breaking stride, she had left the building before the rest of the company could snap out of their stupor, intending to put as much distance as she could between her and their inevitable revenge.

It was beginning to get dark out, and though she hoped that they would not come after her, she wasn't optimistic about it. Better to get away before they could find her ... though, now that she thought about it, where was she exactly? She'd taken one too many turns down the alleys that she was now truly in unfamiliar territory. The posh buildings down this street had nary a sign of life in them. She tried to retrace her steps, but it was no good; when she thought she had found her way, she instead was led into yet another unfamiliar street, this time a housing district. The few servants out in the yards eyed her warily; when she approached them for help, they mostly ignored her. One kindly maidservant had given her vague directions however, and after giving her thanks, she made her way to the northeast, following the maid's instructions with a heavy sigh on her lips. This was going to be one looooong day.

She cried out in surprise as the man barreling down the street barged right into her, causing her to spin on her heels as he tumbled face-first onto the pavement.

"And where are you going in such a hurry, hm?" she asked, the annoyance clear in her tone as she offered a hand to help him back on his feet. She glanced him over quickly, her expression changing to one of concern. What little skin she could spy looked pale, and though she couldn't be sure from the weak moonlight, it seemed like he was bleeding.

"Are you okay?" she asked in a gentler tone. In the distance, she could hear the sound of running boots but thought nothing of it for the moment, more worried that the man might've cut himself against a sharp stone on his fall.

Uh oh, trouble. Her legs were moving before the thought even entered her mind, backtracking down the street and away from her intended destination. She'd had enough trouble for the day and she wasn't going to invite any more. Her eyes darted about, searching for any dark recess or alley that she could hide herself and the pale man in.

There's nothing ... wait, that could work. She stopped before a small dirt path which led towards a looming stone edifice. The sign above the door was unreadable in the dim light, but it was an unimportant detail right now. It was low enough for her to scale without difficulty, and with a little boost the pale man could easily hide on the roof with her.

"Hey, over here quick!" she called out to him urgently. She wasn't sure if she was imagining it, but it sounded like there were more voices and footsteps than she had heard initially, and they were now closing in from both ends of the street ...

"We'll be fine up here," she replied calmly. She began scanning the surrounding rooftops just in case they needed to make an exit however. The neighboring roofs were higher and or steeper than the one they were currently on, and while she felt confident she could make the jump it was difficult to estimate the distance in such dim lighting, plus she had another with her. She couldn't contemplate too much on it however as her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of conversation carried on the wind, and she instinctively ducked low. Peering over the side she could just make out the faint orange glow of torches bouncing off the buildings, casting strange shadows against the walls.

"Shawt whemen inna g - green dressssh? Never sh-s --" She went pale at that. Looks like the mercenaries were hunting her after all. But before the sentence could be finished another fellow cut in.

"Oi, this way! Trail goes up here!"

Trail? What trail?! How could there have been a tra --, she stopped, mentally kicking herself. The man had been bleeding, of course there'd be a trail, and it would most definitely lead them here. What should she do? She could risk leaping to the nearby window sill and scaling up to the roof, but that would mean possibly leaving the poor guy stranded alone. Could she perhaps try to misdirect them? A decision had to be made quick, and she hoped that the one she chose was the right one.

Without a word, she dropped back down onto ground level, and approached the dirt path. The man's pursuers were coming into view now, and from the light of the torch they carried she could make them out. They were well-armed and wore ample protection; one was garbed in a slightly battered chain hauberk while the other was equipped head to toe as though he were going to war, dressed in a full suite of cuir bouilli. The one in chain seemed to be inebriated, but while his speech might be slurred his eyes betrayed his true state. He grasped a nasty looking ax in both hands as he followed behind his partner, who had a crossbow slung behind his back and a saber hanging loosely on his belt. Suspicion gnawed at the back of her mind that the man she had helped was probably not what he seemed, but she pushed it away as she approached them, stepping into the light and entering their view.

Before she could hail them however, the man at the back's eyes grew wide and he yelled, "EY, ITSA GHREEN DRESSHED LASS THEY WUS LOOKEN FAH! OVAH HYEEA!" One of the mercs must have heard him, because she could hear the sound of rapidly falling boots rushing to where they were. The fully geared man smiled coldly, drawing his blade while his partner stepped forward, taking a wide stance.

"No hard feelings girl, but you've really irritated the Black Bears ... and the Black Bears' good side is worth getting on for two blokes like us," he explained callously. She groaned internally as the situation broke down before she could even get a handle on it. A fight was unavoidable, but even so she hoped she could knock them out and get back onto the roof before the mercenaries came. Without warning she shot forwards, twirling her walking stick in a forward grip and swiftly closing the distance with a leaping thrust aimed at the axman's temple. Though she had caught him by surprise he was still able to partially mitigate her blow, batting away her strike so that it missed its mark. It was still enough to send him reeling, clutching his brow in pain and putting him out of the fight for the moment. The other one had snapped out of his surprise and had circled behind her, stepping forward now to slice at her with a whirlwind of steel. His saber fencing was good, and she noted that while it was not complex, there was very little excess in his technique as she retreated from the onslaught, parrying and avoiding his strikes as she tried to circle around him to get into a more favorable position. The footsteps were closer now, and she could hear the rasping of blades being drawn as the mercenaries drew near. From the corner of her eye she spied the axman slowly rising to his feet, already recovering from her surprise attack. Any hope of resolving this without bloodshed was fast evaporating.

With a sudden ferocity she lashed out at her opponent, putting him on the defensive as she swiftly regained her ground. His partner was up now and with a bellow he charged forwards and swung, narrowly missing her back as she twirled away before arching back and countering with a vicious thrust to his exposed throat, dropping him into a gurgling, blood-frothing heap as his adam's apple was crushed. She swiftly snapped back to meet the oncoming blade from the opponent in front of her, her momentum lending her such force that he swung wide from the impact, leaving himself open. She stepped to his side and swung hard, her walking stick shattering from the impact against his unprotected face. He stood motionless for a second before falling backwards onto the road, dead or unconscious, she did not know.

Breathing heavily, she tossed aside the useless stub of hardwood in her hands and kicked the now fallen swordsman's saber into the air grip-side up, catching it in her hand. She turned towards the sound of approaching footsteps, adopting a loose stance, blade forwards and at the ready. She could regret any loss of life later; right now, it was them or her.