[Flashback] An assassin as entertainment? [Solo]

[Kiara Killraven]

Summer 15, 510 AV Kiara was unaccustomed to moving about outside of a city. Despite that she did her best as she moved along the dusty road. She had gotten a contract to kill a certain individual in the city and after a few days of sneaking about she had finally done just that. She held the sack of the man's head in her hand as she walked. It had been quite comical walking through the city with the bag and it's dark red stains and a slight crimson liquid dripping onto the ground. She had no doubt that many people she had passed had known full well what lied within the sack or at least had had an idea. To her amusement no one had had the courage to stop her and ask her just what she was doing with such an object. She banished such thoughts as she closed in on the place the man, who had contracted her to kill someone, had told her he would meet her. As she crested a small hill the spot came into view. True to his word the man sat there on a wagon. Around him stood three men that Kiara could have only guessed were his guards. Why else would they just be standing there in leather armors and short swords at their hips without drawing them to kill them man? Places out side of cities were almost as cut throat and ruthless as places such as Sunberth. In some cases they were even more so. Cities tended to hold people like her. Out here in there were many things you could run into that were far more dangerous then a simple assassin. As she approached the wagon the man gave her an appraising look. He obviously was not admiring her as a fighter but for the simple fact that she was a woman. She let a scowl cross her face as his eyes trailed up and down her body. As she moved within ear shot of the group she stopped and called out to them "Are we going to do business or are you going to continue to just look at me?" she asked. Even with her high pitched voice it would take someone thick of head to not notice the bite in the words. She was obviously one that wanted to get her job done quickly and go about her business. The man gave her a toothy grin and turned to say something to one of the guards. The guard seemed to find it funny because he started chuckling soon after. The businessman turned back to his hired assassin and answered. "Of course we're going to do business. But first I want some entertainment." With that he lifted his hand into the air and snapped his fingers. Kiara sat there not moving as the three men moved in on her. She barely had tome to raise one of her daggers to protect herself before they reached her. The short sword of the first guard, to make it to her, arced in at her neck. For a moment time seemed to slow as she attempted to bring her blade up in time to save her life. Then almost as though a switch was pressed time seemed to resume, her dagger meeting the short sword's blade in time to press it up enough to miss her head as it whistled by. The blades she wielding were smaller and lighter weight then those of the men. The three men separated and moved apart forcing Kiara to back peddle once again. she lifted her second dagger slowly from it's sheath. She was still unused to using more then one weapon at a time but she could ill afford to not try when faced with three opponents at once.

[Kiara Killraven]

Kiara muttered a curse to herself as they continued to move further apart. She couldn't let them surround her or else the fight would be over long before it ever began. All three of the men moved in unison as they came in at her. These were no mere thugs. These men had been trained to fight and die with one another. They were professionals. Not one to wait for her impeding doom, the white haired assassin stepped to the right then lunged at the man to her left. Unsure as to whether it was surprise that a woman could move so quickly or they had not expected her to be skilled enough in combat to attempt such a feint. The dagger and the short sword could be heard grinding against each other as the two blades slid along each other until both weapon's hand guards collided with a loud metallic clang. Kiara twisted her dagger hooking the short sword at the guard. She let a slight smirk show on her lips as she yanked on the man's blade with her own. It became clear now that it was surprise that had allowed her to pull off such a bold action without sustaining any injuries. Kiara let the smirk stay on her face as she spread her legs and pulled on the dagger as hard as she could. For a moment it didn't seem like the action had any effect on the guard. Then gradually the man began to lean forward and eventually fall over completely. Having lost his grip on his weapon the white haired assassin was able to flick her dagger slightly and send the short sword flying away. The glint of light reflecting from steel and the darkening of a shadow was the only warning she got. Still that was all she needed. Without thinking Kiara flung her body to the side as hard as she could. As he body flew through the air it rotated, giving her a clear image of the short sword that passed through the area that her head had previously occupied. She loosened her body as it hit the ground to prevent herself from sustaining harm. In less time then it took for someone to take a breath she was back on her feet. The two men still standing looked at their fallen comrade for a moment before looking at each other. It was obvious they were trying to decide where to wait for him to recover or press the attack.

[Kiara Killraven]

The two men made up their minds without any visible sign. The only warning she had was the sudden burst of movement as the two guards closed the rest of the distance between her and them. The first guard brought his short sword racing down at her head. The weapon weighed more then her dagger. Not only that but the man was also likely stronger then her. Kiara was mindful of this as she brought her dagger up to block the downward slash. As she brought her dagger up she slanted the blade. Had she tried to block the attack evenly the short sword lightly would have continued despite her dagger and at least caused her minor injury. Her action caused the short sword to curve slightly as it impacted the dagger and slide down the smaller blade's length, coming to a halt at the hand guard. The man seemed to not want to just end their exchange there. His second hand soon joined his first as he pressed down on the dagger. Kiara muttered yet another curse as she was forced down to one knee. She tried to push back at the man but her one arm was no match for the full strength of his body. The other man, thinking her easy prey, moved in quickly. The white haired woman saw him out of the corner and went on the offensive. Out her left arm streaked, trusting and slashing at the man's legs as quickly as she could muster in her strained state. The man wasn't able to react fast enough to Kiara's first attack to block it in time. The slash cut a very thin line across the guard's shin before he could bring his short sword up enough to block her attacks and protect his sudden retreat out of her range. She did not want to leave herself open to the other guard if she tried to attack the guard beside her with her free arm. Yet if she continued to let him bare down on her like this she wouldn't be able to hold him off much longer. With a sudden rush of adrenaline fueling her strength Kiara put all of her body into pushing the man's short sword up. With the man's blade no longer close to her body she flung herself forward out from under him. She tucked her legs in close to her body as she landed, her body rolling once before she came to her feet, both of her daggers still clutched firmly in her hands. Kiara did not have much time to think after coming to her feet. One of the men was on her almost the second she got to her feet. Luckily for her she was used to not thinking when she was fighting. A fighter that tried to think was a fighter that got killed. By now she was used enough to fighting for most of the basic movements and actions to be reflex. In situations like this her small agile frame showed its potential. Her arms moved blindingly fast as she brought both of her daggers up in a large side ways cross. The guard's blade landed in the middle of the two daggers where their lengths met each other. The white haired woman gave her weapons thrust upwards as she pushed the man's blade back towards him.

[Kiara Killraven]

As Kiara moved back she breathed a slight thank you to whatever god was listening. If she had been wearing normal leather armor she likely wouldn't have been able to pull off such easy movements and would have probably died a few moments after the fight had started. The two men looked at each other for a moment. They seemed puzzled as to why she wasn't dead yet. Evidently their boss sent them after singular targets pretty often. They seemed highly trained but not very experienced in prolonged fights. It was that very training that spurred them into action now. By now the guard that Kiara had disarmed earlier had managed to get himself back to his feet and recover his weapon. This time they took to a different strategy when they came at her. The first guard moved directly at her, he was followed closely by a second and the third moved around attempting to find an opening to exploit. Kiara stood still as the three moved in. It was not until the very last second that she moved. As soon as the first man got within range of her he lunged. The leather clad woman twisted to the side as the sword stabbed the air that she had been standing in just a moment before. As she moved out of the way of the blade she let the momentum of her body be the driving force of her attack, her arm coming up as her dagger raced for the man's neck. For a moment's time it did not seem like the man was going to make it out of this one alive. The man's saving grace was the fact that his fellow guard had been so close behind him when he had came in to attack Kiara. His fellow's short sword streaked in, putting itself between her dagger and the man's neck. Muttering a curse at the man for his prudent defense of his comrade, the white haired girl continued to twist. Keeping her momentum going from her first attack she let her body twist fully around and bringing the dagger in her left hand speeding for his mid section. The man backed away as quickly as he could causing the dagger to only leave a small cut on the leather armor covering his abdomen. Kiara pressed her advantage. With the man off balance she launched into a furious combination of attacks. Stepping closer to swung with her right dagger. Again the man moved back as she brought her left hand forward as if to stab him. The surprised defender stumbled a bit as he dodged her next attack, a follow up slash with her right hand at his neck, and crashed into the third guard. The two both went down in a jumble of flailing limbs. For a split second she got the urge to end them both right then and there. She would have too if she had only been facing two opponents and not three. Kiara turned just in time to see the point of a short sword racing at her. Had she not turned back when she had the sword would have impaled her from behind. Again it seems luck favored her. In that small bit of time it had taken her to turn her body the sword's target had been shifted. Now as she came around the blade bit into the back part of her left shoulder. A sharp and sudden pain bloomed in her shoulder as the sword cut through her flesh. For the first time since the fight had started Kiara spoke. "Petch," was the only word that came out. The wound caused from the short sword was not a deep one but it still would take it's toll if the fight lasted much longer. Over the years she had sustained many injuries. In doing so she had gotten used to dealing with pain. That is what she did here as she continued to turn towards the man. She took a step towards the man as she twisted, letting both her movement in his direction and the momentum from his thrust in her's, bring them closer. With the distance between the two of them now considerably smaller the man's eyes widened in surprise. In raced the assassin's dagger. It was too late for him to fully dodge her attack though. Even with the quick movement to the side the man could not avoid her attack. The dagger thrust that had been aimed for his chest instead bit deeply into his shoulder. Even though the wound was mere inches from where Kiara has meant for it to land, that one action had saved the man's life. Kiara pulled her dagger from the man's shoulder and moved back. The man seemed to have the same idea as she did because he also stepped back. The girl let another curse work it's way out from between her lips. She could feel the wound on her shoulder starting to soak into the leather armor on her arm. They both knew that if this fight lasted much longer both of their lives were in danger. A loud whistle filled the air suddenly, grabbing both their attentions. The business man lowered his fingers from his mouth and grinned at the group. "Aye you did give me quite the show," he shouted at her. "Here take your money and let me know if your ever in need of work again." With that he tossed a small bag at the assassin and turned to grasp the reigns of his horse. It seemed she would live for another day after all.

[Leviathan]

Thread Award!   Skills Skill Gain Info. Weapon (Dagger) 4 -- Dual Wield 1 -- Wrestling 1 --   Lore N/A

Additional CommentsI know you're looking for Dual Wielding more in your threads, but I'd like to see the simultaneous use of two weapons to earn more exp towards it.