Private Tales Good ale. Bad company.

[Nugai]

The one to the left ran his hand though his hair whenever he thought that he had a winning hand. He hadn't touched those almond locks in over three games.

People always thought that it was luck, in the beginning. They'd watch him play a couple games, and think that they had him figured out. It wasn't until they were a few beers deep and betting their shoes that they'd realize they'd caught up in the grift. He never really cheated, but he had always possessed an acute awareness for small details, and a sharp smell.

The Wandering Witch, was a moderately sized inn and one of the few businesses within the small town of New Astapor. It's said it was named after some fabulous city in a far off land, and although it never really lived up to its reputation, it was able to catch travelers along the Golden Road. More so because it was the only option for beer and a warm bed within a hundred miles than any claim to quality. They also had a fair number of travelers begging for Nugai to come relieve them of their well earned money, and he'd never been one to turn down a chance to fill his pockets.

The one on the right was hard to read, but he could smell the fear sink in as she examined her hands. He'd lose games here and there, but he always knew when was about to win. Right now, he could basically feel their coins jingling in his pouch. He tipped back his cup to finish the last dregs of his ale before he placed his hand down, and the groans echoed across the table.

"Hissut's hairy taint," The one in the middle cursed as he threw down his own cards.

All three of his opponents revealed their cards with a look of defeat and suspicion. Nugai had already considered leaving, but that particular curse meant that it was time to make himself scarce.

With a smile he pooled up the coins. "It's been fun, but we've got a long trip in the 'morn and I..."

The man on the left gave him a harsh look as he pushed his own cup towards Nugai. "I'll buy you another round if you give us a chance to win some of that back."

"Coppers for gold isn't my taste, honey."

He stood up to go, and for a second the one in the middle looked like he was about to get up, but a hand from the woman calmed him down. "Hope we'll see you again, you weren't half bad," She said in an eerie tone.

He gave her a nod of his hat as pushed the coins into his bag and quickly walked to where Agatha sat. She had stopped playing cards a with Nugai back when she'd learned about his somewhat unexplainable talents, but had wanted to come for a few drinks. They'd just gotten off the end of a rough few days, so there probably wouldn't be a single sober soldier in the camp tonight.

Nugai ducked down low to her ear and whispered, "Might've pissed off some of my new friends. Best to be leaving, if we value our good standing here in this fine establishment."

 

[Agatha]

"Yeah, place is getting a bit too crowded for my liking." Downing the last of her beer, Agatha pushed herself up and away from the table she had taken for her own, sweeping Nugai -and his winnings- into a one-armed hug as she made for the door. "Y'know, one of these days I might be able to figure out all your tells. Must've seen at least half of 'em by now." Letting go of her subordinate, the captain gave him a gentle shove in the back as they made their exit.

Following him out into the street, the she-orc took a quick glance over her shoulder as the door to the Wandering Witch swung shut behind them. A brief image of the card players climbing to their feet was all she got before her amber eyes turned away, back to the man in front of her.

"Looks like you were right about your friends," she commented, falling into step by his side as they made their way down the well-lit street. The company had set camp half a mile outside of New Astapor. A number of them had travelled into the city alongside Agatha and Nugai, unable to resist the pull of civilisation and all the comforts that came with it. It wasn't often they got a chance to spend their hard-earned coin on wine, women and song, Agatha knew. Best to make the most of it while you could.

Nugai had been the first among them to join her, making clear his intentions well before they'd even reached the city gates. Agatha, knowing the score and the man both, had accepted the offer of company, and so joined him on his tour of the city. The scout was okay in her book, one of the few company men who could be trusted not to try and screw her, or screw her over.

Least not intentionally.

"Don't look now, but we've got company," she said, spotting their tail in the rain-speckled reflection a passing window provided. A hand snaked beneath her cloak to the bollock dagger sheathed at her hip. "A handful or so. Your friends and theirs."

 

[Nugai]

"A pity, really. A few more and it might be a fair fight."

Nugai had also noticed the tail almost at the same instant that Agatha had spoke up. The Captain held a knife in her hand, but Nugai had left his valuables at the camp. There had a been a few times that he'd trusted his instincts a little too well, and gambled away those kinds of things. Unfortunately, a mercenary without a stitch wasn't a good purchase.

From what he had seen in the bar, his fists would do fine. Still, there was a farmer's cart just a few paces up the road--

"Ay, you!" Nugai turned on his heels as he heard the shout from behind him. It was the woman on the right, the one that he'd thought was the leader of this little pack from the beginning. "Fancy meeting you here."

"Don't suppose you've come to return my coat? Think I left it back there in all the excitement." He gave his best smile, but the jig was up. No amount of sweet words would back them down, and Nugai wasn't going to give these coins back. It had probably been up from the moment that he'd won that last game.

The woman gave a mocking laugh as her hand went to a sword that she'd somehow procured in the few minutes from leaving the inn. He was certain that she hadn't been carrying that when they were playing. He gave a weary look at the group again, and they seemed to be fairly well armed. It was about seven in total, three of them held bludgeons with spikes on the ends, three of them had short swords and one carried a curved bladed sword that looked like some he'd seen soldiers from Amol-Kalit wear. He hadn't seen those in these parts very often, but the man had made curse to one of the desert gods.

"Yer the one's needing to return something of ours, boy. Don't want to hurt you, but we're getting our money back," The one with the strange sword announced as he took another step forward.

He took a few steps back as he raised his hands. He backed up a bit, until his back hit the cart. "Money's good enough a cause to die for as any, I'd reckon."

One of the men with a bludgeon had heard enough and rushed forward as all hell broke loose.

 

[Agatha]

"Of ours or theirs?" Agatha asked, a smirk forming as she side-eyed Nugai. Whatever answer he might've given didn't matter as they were interrupted shortly after by the woman on their heels. Turning, the captain kept her blade hidden as she took in the faces and builds of the group arrayed against them. Seven in total, mostly armed. Agatha let go of her dagger and switched over to the longsword she had sensibly brought along. Three and a half pounds of double-edged steel, it was a good blade. Overkill for a bar brawl, but this wasn't that.

"Nice sword!" The guy with the arakh shouted, flashing a grin colder than the look in his eyes.

"At that distance, sure!" Agatha called back, returning his grin. Perhaps it was the beer talking, but the she-orc had never backed down from no-one. She wasn't going to start anytime soon. Watching Nugai, she waited as he wagged chins with the woman. Apparently she was the boss of this rabble, if the sword and the right to speak was anything to go by. Sword-boy must've been her second. He stepped forward, all serious.

Agatha stepped back in line with Nugai. She cast a quick look over her shoulder. Not because she planned on running. Just figuring out her surroundings was all. Far too late to run.

Nugai's back hit the cart, and the she-orc stopped. Here we go, she thought as her comrade made mercenaries everywhere proud with a somewhat witty remark. It was certainly enough to drive one of the bludgeoners over the edge, for suddenly they were charging.

Smiling, Agatha drew her longsword a moment before the first one reached her. He was mid-swing, already looking to get stuck in. Sidestepping, Agatha drove the hilt of her sword into the man's chin, sending him tumbling against the side of the cart. Another quick step and she was parrying the sword-boy, her smile already shifting into a snarl as she turned him aside.

"Get her from behind!"

"Get the cunt on her back!"

Launching herself at the sword-boy, Agatha thrust her blade at his chest. He deflected, as she knew he would. She followed up with a high cut, rotating her wrist to keep up momentum. Her blade bit into the meat of the bastard's shoulder. He screamed as blood splashed against Agatha's face. That brought her smile back.

For a few moments anyway.

Spinning, Agatha caught the first man charging her. A boot to the balls upset his stride, and suddenly he was past her again. Sword-boy screamed louder as the man collided with him hard enough to carry them both to the ground. "Bitch!" Someone cursed, and Agatha felt her left arm explode in pain as a bludgeon struck home.

 

[Nugai]

The bludgeoner's rush was auspicious, to say the least. Nugai would give him the benefit of the doubt and say he was drunk, but he was probably just a hasty person. It didn't even take a great amount of speed for the Blackshield to duck out of the way. The man's own moment brought him into the side of the cart, where he recovered into Nugai's waiting fist.

He jumped back quickly, as another tried to take a more calculated approach on the distracted Nugai. Even with a few drinks in him, Nugai wasn't about to get surprised in a fight. These kids might have him outmatched, but it was hardly a fair fight. He used the wheel of the wagon as a stepping stone as he hopped up into the cart.

A hoe or a pitchfork.

One of the men was trying to get up into the car, so he went with the less cumbersome option. The wood for the hoe was too stiff for any prolonged use, but it would help him keep some distance from those swordsmen. He wasn't as worried about the bludgeoners, there was probably a reason they were basically just given shitty barbed sticks.

"Woah there buddy." The hoe moved fast as it smacked the man off the back of the wagon.

He had contemplated stabbing him, but he wasn't entirely sold on gutting these pickpockets at this point. Hopefully, after they'd been ruffed up a bit they'd just move on. When the second man jumped up more quickly than the first attempt, he took his time and allowed some space. It wouldn't be good to pin himself into the wagon, so he went for a quick jab at the man.

The man knocked the hoe to the side with relative ease and went for his own attack. He wasn't nearly close enough for the strike to be useful, and Nugai quickly dodged before he smacked the man with the edge of the hoe hard enough to splinter the wood. With a sigh, he threw it down and grabbed the pitchfork. With the other man holding his face, Nugai jumped from the cart back to the ground, close to where Agatha still stood her ground. A pitchfork wasn't much, but it was a sight better than nothing.

 

[Agatha]

Whirling, Agatha drove her bludgeoner back with a swing of her sword. The flat of her blade caught the man in the temple hard enough to draw blood. "Who's the bitch now?!" She shouted, anger and annoyance bubbling over as her opponent stumbled back a pace, clearly regretting his life choices now that he had sprung a leak.

Her eyes burning and her arm smarting, Agatha tried to bite down on her temper as Nugai jumped down beside her. The scout had a weapon of his own now, though, the she-orc didn't know what good a pitchfork would do him given the circumstances. Anything's better than nothing, she reminded herself, hefting her blade as the gang regrouped and began to weigh their options.

Taking a step back, the captain risked a quick glance over her shoulder. The street was deserted now that a fight had broken out. Shutters had been pulled closed, doors locked and barred. Even the vagrants had decided to up sticks and move on. Looking back, Agatha took a breath as one of the bludgeoners tried to loop around her. A quick step and he was leaping backwards.

Another thug, egged on by his buddies, made to attack Agatha and caught the flat of her blade low on his thigh.

"Ah! Fuck! That hurt!"

At least one of them had learnt their lesson.

"They must really want their coin back." Agatha said quietly, grinning at Nugai as she twirled her sword in an attempt to stave off any further trouble. "Next time... find some easier marks. Ones with bigger brains and smaller balls."

 

[Nugai]

"It's hard to imagine finding smaller brains," Nugai muttered back, hopefully loud enough for the idiots to hear him.

The grunts had backed off for the moment, most of them nursing wounds that would take at least a few days to heal. Any sane group of collective idiots would've taken it as a sign that this hadn't been worth the time.

The same bludgeoner that he'd knocked off the side of the cart came back with a vengeance. He had to give him marks for his persistence, even as he ducked past the swing once again. The other man that he'd left in the cart took this brief distraction to jump down onto Nugai, tackling him from the air. The pitchfork dropped from his hands as he tried to resist the weight.

"Fuck off." Nugai grabbed the man's left arm with his own and punched him squarely in the throat.

As he threw the wheezing man to the ground, the bludgeoner struck him hard on the shoulder. Nugai let out a grunt as he spun around. His shoulder felt badly bruised, but he was pretty certain nothing had broken. It would be stiff come sunrise, though.

The bludgeoner stood back now. The grunts had all backed off for the moment, as they conferred with the woman that hadn't been involved yet. He sincerely hoped the sword was ornamental, because he didn't quite feel like fighting against a real threat at this point.

"Do you think they're dumb enough to keep going? " He muttered to Agatha as he took the brief pause to pick up his pitchfork.

 

[Agatha]

Sighing loudly, the captain dipped her head. Yes, they really were that dumb. "Probably gonna have to put one of these poor bastards down before it's all said and done," Agatha commented drily, raising her voice just enough for everyone else to hear her words. Falling back in lockstep with her comrade, the captain quietly wished some of her other brothers were here to help out.

"Enough of this!" The gang leader rasped, charging forwards.

Stepping close, Agatha met her charge readily. Steel clashed as the others circled or stood back, content to let their boss do her own dirty work for a change. A few still looked eager enough, Agatha noted, but she had little time for them right now. Parrying high, the she-orc turned the woman's blade aside before countering with a riposte. Silvered steel shimmered as it sliced into the meat of the gang leader's bicep, deep enough to draw blood and elicit a cry of pain.

Edging back, it was seconds before Agatha noticed a pain in her own chest. Glancing down, the she-orc inhaled sharply as she spotted the bloody line carved across her abdomen. "Not bad, huh?" The gang boss asked, smiling against the pain. Grinning despite herself, Agatha nodded. "Not bad at all," she agreed, pressing a hand to her wound.

She's fast, the unspoken thought went.

"Hope there's enough coin there to settle a blood feud, Nugai." Agatha said, feeling her anger returning as she eyed the leader warily. The woman eyed her, too. Hell, in another life, they could've been good friends. Not this one though. "Well? Come on with it... if you're coming?"

 

[Nugai]

"Don't know the price on a blood feud, but should buy enough booze for us to forget about all this in the 'morn."

He wasn't one to interfere in a brave soldier's personal honor battle, but it looked like the woman's second bastard was gearing up to give his bosses' honor a helping hand. Even as the evidentially suicidal man nursed his shoulder, he sidled a bit towards the exposed side of Agatha. It had to be love or some kind of life debt. There was a smell on him, like an animal that had been in a trap too long. Something feral that needed to be put down before it could hurt itself.

Nugai intercepted as quickly as he could, dancing around the battle between Agatha and the woman. The man brought up his sword, and he batted it to the side with the broad end of the pitchfork. This thing wasn't long enough to be of any real use, but these kids didn't know how to fight against anything longer than those toothpicks they carried around.

As the man went for another attack, Nugai had enough space to catch the blade in between the prongs. He moved quick to twist the path of the man's blade down and towards the right. The movement jerked the sword directly out of his hand. Suddenly, Nugai knew why he'd had to travel so far just to find a shitty gang to get bogged down with. The man was an atrocious fighter.

He spun whipped the fork as quickly as it would allow into the face of man. The wood finally gave way with a loud crack and the man slumped over immediately. It might have been enough force to have him drinking his meals for a few weeks, but Nugai didn't think that he was dead. Agatha had all but given him permission to put them down, and this one's persistence made him think that the should do just that. if nothing else, to show the rest of them that they'd fucked around long enough.

"Any one else hankering for some dirt?" He asked as he dropped the haft of the pitchfork, and bent over to pick up arakh. He hefted it in his hand for a moment before he looked back up to the silence.

Even as the battle between bosses waged on, up the road came the trample of hooves. The rest of the grunts that weren't formerly engaged pointed at the figures and took off into the night. These riders had the bearing of some flavor of city watch or guardsmen, finally springing into action to save the town.

"Well, fuck me sideways." He bent over to see if the man was still alive, as he told the women, "Might be in all our best interest to get out of here."

 

[Agatha]

The leader stepped up to the challenge. Even with her arm wounded and weeping, Agatha found the woman to be nimble. Her strikes lacked some of the initial strength the she-orc had grown accustomed to, true, but she was light on her feet. And worse, she was always moving, never standing still for too long. Experienced, then. Makes a change, Agatha thought, letting her blade do the talking as she hacked and thrust, swung and parried and danced aside.

She glimpsed the sword-boy coming up on her right as she fought, saw him fall just as quick.

Breaking away from each other, the two leaders took a moment to catch their breath. The cut Agatha had received was already beginning to clot. Her padded jack was ruined, aye, but she considered that a small price to pay for not being gutted. No doubt the other fighter was just as glad to still possess a sword-arm. Agatha knew she would've been, in her boots.

Meeting her opponent's eyes, the captain huffed in disappointment as Nugai warned of approaching cavaleros.

"Most certainly," the woman replied, seeing the sense in his words. "Give us our coin back, and we'll call it quits." Shaking her head, Agatha almost laughed. "My friend here won that coin, fair and square. You want it? You'll have to win it back." Lifting her head, the she-orc grimaced at the sound of approaching hooves. Half-a-dozen, at least. "Maybe later. Right now, we need to make like ghosts and disappear."

Frowning, her sword bouncing in her hand, the woman conceded the argument with a nod. "Fine! Grab him will you? My arm's fucked!" Sensing no deceit in the gang boss's words, Agatha sheathed her sword and hooked her arms under sword-boy's. Summoning her strength, she hauled him to his feet. Not that he could bloody well use them in his state. "Guy needs to lay off the hams. Gods above..." She cursed, nodding to Nugai.

"Best find us a way out, and make it snappy."

 

[Nugai]

"I swear to every go--" He gritted his teeth and half raised the arakh.

It was probably for the best that Agatha interrupted him with a sensible remark that didn't involve him threatening to gut the wench like a fish. Local authorities were always the kind to make a mountain out of a molehill, and eh didn't really want to spend a night in some guards house.

He huffed in a loose agreement towards the tentative amnesty as he tied the arakh to his belt where his sword would normally hang. AS he turned to look for a safe route out of here, he muttered, "Going to keep this for myself, too. Dirty thieves."

It was unfortunate that their camp was in the direct path of the people that were coming, but they could skirt around the group easily enough. They did need some speed, though. He walkover over to where Agatha was lifting the man and pulled his other arm over his shoulder.

"No offense, Cap, but not sure you'll keep up on your own."

He pointed towards an alley that was adjacent to the farmer's cart. It was big enough that they'd be able to carry the man through with both of them. He tried to hurry them along as quickly as he could without straining Agatha. The other woman seemed to be in rough shape as well. The two had fought fiercely, and he wasn't certain he'd have been able to keep up.

"Don't look now, but they're following." The sounds of pursuit were obvious, as he pulled them down a second alley.

He had the city map mostly memorized. It was one of the few areas of memorization that he'd say he was good at. Couldn't remember people's names for shit, but he could help them lose these tails. There'd be an immediate right hand turn after the left that would lead them past a private square. As he passed by, it looked like the property had been abandoned.

"Give me a minute." He snaked out of the man's arm as he hurriedly dashed into the small alley where the house was accessible. He tested the windows from the backside, but each one was locked.

There was a low lean-to next door that he was able to pull himself up onto, and then hop onto the roof. He carefully crossed the the thatching as he made his way into the small courtyard. As he dropped down into the area, he felt like this might be a bad idea, but it was too late. They had left the front door unlocked, which seemed like they were asking to someone to sneak in. He made his way through a completely empty house as he unlocked the side door and hissed to the others.

"Get in here. It's empty."

 

[Agatha]

Wincing at the pain in her arm and stomach, the captain worked her legs as the cavaleros bore down on them. Though she would never thank him, Nugai was right; she couldn't have kept up even at the best of times. "Let's get the fuck out of here," she said, huffing from the exertion as they made their way down several alleyways in the hopes of shaking their pursuers.

Try as they might, things didn't look too good.

Glancing over her shoulder, Agatha glimpsed the lead horseman as they turned yet another corner. Clad from head to toe in plate, with a barded horse, the man in question looked like more than just your average watchman. "Got some sort of questing blueblood on our arses." Agatha cursed, feeling the urge to spit at the bastard's feet even as her own worked to get her out of trouble. "Why do they always try to play the heroes?"

Not expecting -nor really wanting- an answer, the she-orc took Sword-Boy off of Nugai as the scout tried his hand at finding them a new path out of this mess. The gang boss took his place, relieving some of the strain on Agatha, if but for a moment. They shared a nod, faces grim as the sound of hoofbeats grew louder, closer.

Hurry up, Nugai, Agatha thought, flexing her sword-hand subconsciously as her nerves began to fray.

Luckily, Nugai showed up just in time to save all their hides.

Shoving through the doorway, the she-orc let go of her burden and gently eased the door closed a few seconds before the horsemen reached them. Dark as the alley was, the horsemen didn't even notice the door as they galloped past, whooping and hollering like sailors in a seaside brothel. Clearly Ser Blueblood had something of a hard-on for brigand blood. Otherwise, he might've stopped to ponder how a group on foot could manage to evade his band of mounted warriors.

Closing the door fully, Agatha let out a breath.

"That was close," she said, smiling away happily as she drew her blade again. "So, where were we?"

 

[Nugai]

Nugai visibly rolled his eyes as Agatha pulled out her sword. He started to speak up, but the other person spoke first, "Two on one hardly seems fair."

His annoyance at Agatha turned to incredulity towards the other woman. He pulled out his own sword as he rounded on her, "Maybe we should get five of our closest friends?"

Even with the annoying comment, he couldn't bring himself to gut her after he'd just spent all this trouble trying to get them to safety. He retied the arakh to his belt as he knelt down next to the man that was out. His breathing was shallow, but it seemed like it was even enough. This other woman came up beside Nugai, and he tensed for a moment, but she simply looked down on her second in command.

"Is he going to be ok?" She asked, a look of real concern on her eyes.

Nugai nodded to her as he muttered, "Might have a bit of a headache, but he should be fine."

She smiled over at Nugai as she nodded her head. "It wasn't personal, by the way. Sorry about all that."

"Eh, I get it. Water under the bridge," He offered her a smile of his own as he turned to look.

It was just a moment too late, because she was already mid swing. The hilt of her own blade came up hard and fast to catch Nugai in the temple as he crashed to the ground from the surprise attack. Now that Nugai was out cold, she turned her attention back towards Agatha. A sick smile came across her face as she muttered, "As you said. Where were we?"

 

[Agatha]

"Nugai!" The tone of Agatha's voice was a warning in and of itself. "What the fuck're you doing?" Watching in disbelief as the scout crouched down by the comatose Sword-boy, the captain could do naught but wait and listen as her friend and enemy talked like two long-lost battle buddies. The woman spoke softly at first, feigning concern for an injured comrade. Or at least Agatha thought it was feigned. The best lies always had a hint of truth in them. Maybe that was why Nugai dropped his guard so readily.

Or maybe he just had more of a heart than the captain. Who could say?

"Nugai, you really should-" In a blur the woman was upon him. The meaty sound of jarring bone filled the room as Nugai went down like a sack of shit dropped from a great height. Tensing, Agatha stepped in to protect her fallen subordinate, only for the gang boss to turn and face her, wearing a smile as wicked as the steel in her hand. "As you said. Where were we?" Backing away and to the left, the gang leader eyed Agatha in exactly the same way Sword-boy had, back in the street.

Thankfully, it seemed killing Nugai and getting her coin back wasn't at the forefront of the woman's mind right now.

The captain, on the other hand...

"That was uncalled for." Agatha said, stooping low next to Nugai. Almost gently, her injured arm reached out to check his pulse, then, proceeded to brush at his split scalp. "So says the woman who drew her blade as soon as we were behind closed doors." The leader replied. Agatha grimaced. "Beat you to the punch, huh?" Flexing her sword hand, the woman nodded. "Shouldn't have stolen from us," she said, her voice firm, laced was regret. "Gotta send a message. I'm sure you understand."

Straightening, the she-orc looked her opponent in the eye. "I do."

"All right then." A heartbeat passed. Two. "We doing this here or should we find somewhere more... intimate?" Shrugging, Agatha slid her left leg forward. "Here's fine." No sooner had the words left her mouth then the woman was charging her. Sliding backwards, Agatha parried to the right and went left. The gang leader turned with her, savaging her sword around in a flat arc that met nothing but empty air.

Spilling into the abandoned courtyard, Agatha lured the gang boss away from the unconscious Nugai. Steel rang against steel as the two women swung and stabbed, slashed and parried. Agatha could already feel her muscles burning. What a fucking awful mess we've made, she thought, feeling like death but keeping it at bay all the same.

Nice going, Nugs. Real nice.

 

[Nugai]

The knock sprawled him out on the floor, a knot would undoubtedly form where he'd been hit. When his eyes groggily blinked back open, he really hadn't been out for very long, though. Nugai had always been known for his incredibly thick skull, or so some of his companions had noted.

The Captain and his assailant had exited to the courtyard, which seemed like a poor decision to Nugai considering the group of guards on the look for them. Then again, he had just officially crowned himself the king of poor decision making with that last stunt. He really had thought that their momentary bonding with the chase might've made lightened the other party up to just backing off. Especially when he tried to help her second in command. It seemed like some dogs were too rabid to live. That woman's real mistake was not using the pointy end.

He would show her how that part of the sword worked, if he could get in close enough in his state. Even bloodied up and only half aware of the situation, he could still probably sneak around while Agatha and the sword bitch were engaged. A wince came unbidden as he pulled himself off a little bit off of the ground and drug himself away from the still unconscious guard.

With some help from the wall, he pulled himself up to his feet. He was unsteady, and he felt like he might throw up. The knock might have given him a light concussion after all, but he felt fine otherwise. After he'd gotten his wits about him, he peaked out into the courtyard. The two were locked in battle, and the woman with the sword didn't spare a crossing glance towards the door. He snuck as quietly as he could through the doors into the shadows cast by a set of hedges. As he snuck around to the far yard of the courtyard, sweat dripped from his forehead.

Damn. He was going to feel this in the 'morn.

Still, he'd be feeling it a lot more if they didn't end this situation quickly. There was enough ornaments and fountains and clutter in the courtyard that he was able to slink his way up close. The two were locked into a struggle as he pulled out the arahk and waited for just the right moment. Her back was to him when he rushed forward, his head feeling like it was about to split in half as he brought the blade down on her completely exposed neck.

It wasn't pretty, but the blade sunk in deep and blood immediately splattered across his face as she stood for a moment in stunned silence.

"Sorry, Cap. Guess you had the right of it." As the woman fell, he let the blade fall with her and sat himself down on the paving stones. "I think I'll be owing you for a few centuries after this little tiff."

He pulled a flask out of his jacket as he knocked back a drink. With a heavy sigh he looked over at Agatha and held it out to her. "What a fuckin' mess."

 

[Agatha]

Like a pair of drunk hooligans, the women did battle. To Agatha's great surprise, there was no swearing to be had, no goading, not even a little bit of word-play to get hearts thumping. Their swords and their fists did all the talking. And sometimes their booted feet did, too. As for avoiding the worst of the damage, well, she did that too, if only be a cunt's hair.

Of course, the gang leader was handling things just as well, which, when Agatha stopped to think about it, was a crying shame. She really wanted this night to be over with.

"Had enough?!" The gang bitch snarled, wiping at her split lip with the back of her freehand. Even in the half-light of the courtyard, Agatha could see the blood staining her face and clothes. The torn shirtsleeve, the fresh gash along her thigh. There was even a drop or two on her right earlobe, just above the new scar Agatha had given her. Shaking her head, the she-orc smiled in reply. "Didn't think so," the gang leader laughed, breathing heavily.

Agatha's breath was just as forced; by the gods did she feel like crap.

"I can think of a dozen ways I'd rather be spending my evening," she admitted, soliciting another laugh from her enemy. "Yeah..." The gang leader said, going on the attack once more. Agatha defended as best she could. It was sloppy work, rushed, but any defence was better than no defence. 'Sides, it didn't have to be perfect to get the job done. Her old master-at-arms had taught her that, Spirits guide him. He had died some two- three years before, in a street brawl much like this one.

How history had a way of repeating itself.

Round and round they went, Agatha on the backfoot, the leader always pushing. To give the woman her due, the strikes were well-aimed, the thrusts deadly accurate. If Agatha had not been her better in both training and experience, she might've proved the end of her. Fortunately, the captain had friends. The kind that didn't dip at the first signs of trouble.

Doing her best to distract her enemy, the she-orc went still as Nugai struck. Blood flashed in the moonlight as steel bit flesh. The woman's eyes went wide. Then, she toppled.

Nugai fell with her, his captured blade discarded. Agatha made to grab him until a stab of pain coursed through her belly and chest. Hugging her arm close, the she-orc gave up on trying to help her fellow mercenary. Shit, in her current state, she couldn't even help herself.

Returning blade to sheathe, the she-orc extended a bloody hand to Nugai, her teeth gritted against the pain making its home in her body. "I'll add it to your tab, you-... you... foolish man." Grinning to hide how much she hurt, the captain took the offered drink with a look and a nod. "Aye, what a mess," Agatha echoed, draining the flask's contents before tossing it back to Nugai.

"Let it be entered into the records that New Astapor... fuckin' sucks." Extending her hand again, she tilted her head towards the doors. "Now, unless you're feeling the suicidal urge to try and con more out of the local coffers, I suggest we go pay our sawbones a visit. Oh, and tell no-one of this, y'hear? Captain's s'posed to set an example, not become one."