Desperate Times Desperate Mesures (Private Don)

[Val'pold Aurelius]

Summer 12 day 512 AV

Syliras had changed from the city he had grown up in, but yet in many ways the city wasn't all that differences. There were some serious structure differences. The freestanding buildings were all demolished and everyone was now living in apartments, but that was only the cosmetic change. Syliras had always struggled for order against the chaos of the world, and that struggle still went on, just more pronounced. Commerece in the city had slowed to a trickly, and the streets were now filled with the sounds of people rebuilding.

He had paused in his walking throught the streets and was looking at the clear blue sky with its smatering of beautiful clouds that gave one a sences of peace. It was while indulging in this moment of contentment that he heard was sounded like a yell. His blue eyes were brought back to the ground around him. He was armored as was his habit unless off duty or needing to help in a rebuilding project, with a shield, sword and dagger. All had there uses while patroling the streets. The Shield was excellent way to deal with armed trouble.

He set of at a clainking pace and turned the corner to see what the commotion was. He turned the corner and saw an old woman standing at the enterance to one of the apartment complexes. There was blood on her forehead and she was pointing towards three men running down the street. "Our food, our grain. Come back." It was sadely a common crime in these resent days, food was its own wealth, and sometimes people tried to distrubute it. One of the men looked backwards and saw the squire come around the corner and with a guilty look at the woman motioned for his friends to move faster.

Val'pold called after them. "Stop." He really didn't expect them to but it would go better for them if they did. With that he took off after the men wondering if there were any other squires or knights around.

[Don]

Donathon had been tasked with patrol duty. Again. Yet he could or would not complain. He knew what he was in for when he was inducted as a Knight, and knew the duties that he would have to fulfil. Sometimes the life of a Knight was boring and slow-paced, and other times it was enjoyable and adrenaline-fuelling. It all depended on the day, and the situation at hand. This day was certainly not the latter, and so far the only crimes he had seen had all been stopped at his presence. That included the mugging of a woman, and two men trying to steal grapes for a stall. His sheer armour made them turn the other cheek, and stop whatever they had been doing. It was not until Donathon heard a commotion that things became exciting. He heard the shrill cries of an elderly woman, and the loud footsteps of escaping thieves. Whatever they had stolen must have been valuable, as the woman’s plead for help could be heard even over the angry shouts of the other civilians. Don stormed around the corner with his blade drawn, his path destined to collide with the thieves eventually. He had managed to cut them off by swinging in around an alley, standing right in their path as they charged through the city streets. He was outnumbered but ready, yet the sheer pace they ran at assumed the men were not going to stop. And they weren’t. ”Stop!” Don commanded as the men drew near, yet they failed to heed his warning. Instead they rammed him over, and even with his size Don still toppled to the ground. His armour made him fall even faster, like a sack of potatoes being thrown from a roof. Gravity pulled him against the stone below, and allowed the thieves to keep moving. Several civilians in the area came over to help him up, which they had done quite efficiently, and with haste. The knight dusted himself off, cussing under his breath. They had not escaped. This was not over.

[Val'pold Aurelius]

The Knight missed seeing the squire following up behind them. The youth watched as a Knight stepped forward from around the corner and stood in the way of the on coming thieves. They ran past him, knocking him down, but he had achieved the effect of slowing them down a bit. The men were clearly desperate now they had stolen food knocked over a knight and were now being chased by two men. And they had been unable to take the ally they had originally wanted to by the appearances of the knight, now they were heading into more crowded parts of the city.

Val his armor clanking around him ran up by the knight as he was helped up. “If we hurry we can catch them.” Val knew that part of town well enough to know that the people would most likely get out of the way of the running thieves, but it would be slow enough to cut down their speed. They would be able to follow in the wake, and the sight of two armored men running in the streets of the city was one of the most effective ways to get people out of the way. His own sword was in one hand as he ran by. Theft of food was a high crime, but he knew that they should avoid killing the men if they could.

Confident the knight was running by him he continued down the road. The thieves were clearly trying to find an ally, but the streets were being more crowded and had started stepping it to the ally to get out of the way as one elderly man was showed out of the way. Val’pold was gratefully at this time for the fact his mother had insisted he run first in armor and then with his weapons and shield. He could actually run with the extra weight. These men clearly weren’t either professional thieves or athletes. It might take them a moment but between the two of them he was sure that they could get the men.

[Don]

The pursuit of the thieves was an annoying one. As he regained his posture, Don was approached by another man; one that also pursued the common criminals. The men had lost speed by charging into the knight, speed that would have to be regained if they truly planned on escaping with their lives. Don quickly began to pursue the criminals as the man ran by him, keeping close on his trail despite the heavy armour he bore. He had learned to run and manoeuvre in it through intense training, training that made the armour seem like it weighed nothing at all. ”Stop thieves, or face the cities justice!” Don called out as they pursued the men through the streets, trying hard not to lose his breath in the process. The men were far younger than he; with little clothing upon their backs. They each charged through the crowded city streets, pushing violently into anyone that stood in their path. Donathon and the other man were hot on the pursuit, his boots slamming carelessly against the pavement below, creating a distinct clanging sound. Many members of the public cheered and roared as the men ran by, being careful not to slam into any innocence in their adrenaline-fuelled chase.

[Val'pold Aurelius]

Val felt a brief thrill of the chase as they followed the men through the crowd. The crowd suddenly surged and the men found they were unable to shove their way through anymore. The back two turned to try and fight the oncoming men while the third man tried to open a path. They were young, Val would guess in their twenties and appeared to be common workmen. People were scared and scared people did stupid things.

Val didn’t want to really harm the men but he also wanted them brought to justices. It wasn’t fair that there situation should impose itself upon that of the old lady and possible her family. Everyone was struggling that was the truth of it. One man pulled out a knife, a fairly decent looking one, and the other pulled out a hammer as the squire and the knight came to a stop in front of them. Val held his sword in on hand positioned so that he could use the flat of the blade. He also held his shield in the other hand. He found himself face to face with the one wielding the hammer. And Don would find himself facing the one caring the knife. The last man in the group was still trying to get through the crowd with his bags, but the crowd had caught on to what was happening and the mass of bodies was as a barrier. The man paused and turned to look at the two grim faced men.

“Drop your weapons and hand over the food. It will go much better for you if you do.” Val said in a firm voice that carried around the square as various people shouted at the men. The men glanced at each other resignation on their faces, but also a stubbornness. Then all three seemed to leap forward to attack. Val raised he shield and felt the blow bounced off of the surfaces. He brought his shield back and aimed for the mans wrist with the flat of his blade trying to disarm the man. Against a trained opponent he wouldn’t have stood a chance, but this man wielded a hammer like a craftsmen not a warrior.
At the same time the man with the dagger thrust his blade forward at Don’s gut hopeing to end this quickly, but he was trained to fight against unarmed men and men trained in tavern brawls or out of the way fights. He was quick thought and had a quick weapon. The last man pulled out a club and dived between his friends swinging it like a bat. Not skill, but it was annoying that it was a distraction.

[Don]

As they rushed through the crowds, barging past the innocence and slipping in and out of the large abundance of people, Don could not help but notice the way these men carried themselves. They were common men, he could see it in their dress code, and the way they ran. They did not run in strides, but rather short nimble steps, like any other man. Either they were common thieves, or working men. Whatever the case, they had stolen—and stealing was a crime. They had to face justice, and they had to be punished. Don would make sure their punishment was a fair one, and that they would not be beheaded for stealing a loaf of bread. It was a common crime, but none could go unpunished. As the men were ceased by the growing crowd, they turned to face their pursuers. Donathon had not had time to introduce himself to the other man, but then again, it had not been the time too. Introductions could wait. Before Don had time to persuade the men, one had been upon him, a poorly-sharpened iron dagger in hand. He swung it like a barbarian more than a civilized man, and Don half-expected the man to be skilled in some large weapon like a hammer. For a dagger, his swings were wild and unorthodox, and it was clear he had not wielded one many times in the past. Most users of the weapon did so effectively, using precise and agile stabs and slashes to defeat the enemy. The man was different though, and appeared as though he was trying to hack his opponent to pieces. As the man approached Donathon with a predictable stab, the Knight edged beside him, slapping his palm against the man’s spine. It was not to hurt the man, and only to bring his attention back to Don. As he did so, the knight ran a fist into his nose, cracking it against his cheek. The man screamed in agony as he fell to the ground, brandishing his new nose. The stolen food he had been carrying lay scattered across the ground, and while many of the crowd members eyed it off, a fearsome glare from Don prevented them from trying to take it. He turned his attention back to the man shortly after, his eyes peering happily past Don. The Knight turned to see a man swinging a club at his chest, narrowly avoiding it with a side step. The man turned to face Don again, swinging the club down towards his collar bone. Don moved back to avoid the attack, almost without effort. He was mocking the man in his futile attempts. ”Your swings are unruly and wild. You fight like an animal. Control yourself, and maybe you will lay a hit upon me. I would sooner be slain by a wild pig than that club.” He advised, despite the fact doing so could have ended him up in a worse state. Still, he was confident he could overcome the man either way.

[Val'pold Aurelius]

Val brought the flat of his blade against the man wrist causing the man to gasp in pain. Val too that opportunity to smash flat once again across the mans wrist. He dropped the hammer and Val slammed the shield into the mans face. He heard the sound of a nose breaking and saw the man drop holding his nose.

Val didn’t feel any pleasure in this fight, these men were desperate and not equipped to actually fight even a squire despite his lack of skill. Val didn’t let that affect him though he was here to stop a crime. He turned his attention to the man who had charged between them club swinging. He didn’t have any skill and he felt a smile come on at the knights comment about the man’s skill.

“You are alone now.” Val said indicating to the two companions who were currently on the ground, both now weaponless. “I suggest you give up.”
The man looked between the two of them and had a defensive posture. The man was desperate not crazy, he slowly lowered the club, and Val took it before he could change his mind and also grabbing the other two weapons made sure they out of the way. Next came the process of tieing up the prisoners. The blue eyes youth looked at the man next to him. “Thank you for your aid Ser Knight, it was most timely.” He said with a flash of a smile. “It would have been harder to deal with three at onces.”

[Don]

As the men began to surrender, Don smiled. It had not taken as long as he had thought it would, which was a refreshing feeling in any case. He did not have to work hard and expend too much energy, and also did not have to bring too much harm to the thieves. There were those that knew their limit when it came to fighting, but there were others who kept going until they were unconscious or dead. Cyrus disliked the latter, as he would have much preferred to end a fight swiftly with ample force, not participate in some long, drawn-out shykefest. “You were wise to surrender.” Don said as he began wrapping thick rope around the dagger-wielders hand. The man simply grunted, his eyes fixated upon his weapon that laid several feet out of reach. As Don finished tying him, he put him on his stomach, and walked over to the weapon. The knight knelt down to pick it up, and observed it like he had never seen a dagger before. He surely had, though he had never seen it used in such a barbaric way. “Who taught you to use this?” Don asked, holding the dagger toward the man. He looked up with wide eyes, then gazed around at all the members of the crowd. “My brother. He’s dead now though, because of men like you.” “Well, with no ill-feelings towards him, he taught you wrong.” Don said, and tossed the dagger down in front of the man’s face. “You all fight like savages. Not like men.” He looked around at all three of the thieves, each of which was snarling and glaring at him with violent eyes. He did not care, they had been subdued, they could no longer swing weapons at him wilder than a barbarian. They needed to learn their mistakes, and why they failed here.

[Val'pold Aurelius]

Val'pold finished tieing the two others as Don desided to give them a lesson in fighting. Val thought that antaginising the men was an interesting way of handling the captured thieves, but he was just squire and still had much to learn about the finner points of knighting. His mother had always taught him to learn from everyone.

These men taught him that desperate actions don't make for good plans even thought he had already suspected that. He watched his blue eyes never leaving the men huddled together stairing at the two of them with hatred. Val shook his head, men like this were chaos, and the chase of problems in society. They were probable men with families that were struggling and felt that justified stealing from someone else. Who they most likely presived as richer then them.

Val walked over and took the bag of food and held onto it while the lecture contiuned. He was sure others wouldn't hesitate to take it while they were distracted. The mans claim that men like they had killed him might be true might not, but that was were Val just takes the statement at face value it is what the man thinks and nothing else.

The men didn't say anything else, their really wasn't much one could say. The crowd watched and Val noticed a commotion at the back. A couple other knights had arrived. They looked at the two of them and nodded their heads. "Excellent work."

[Don]

As the other knights complimented him on his efforts, Don moved his body into a low bow, before raising. “Nothing but common street rabble. It is never too hard.” He said jokingly, and the knights soon took the men away. It had been a short and quick fight; and that was exactly how he liked it. Painless, and effortless. He did not truly expect much fight from the men, they were not trained warriors, they were common men with the ambition to get themselves into trouble. Maybe their families had been starving, maybe they needed food to survive, though there were fair nobler ways about getting it than stealing it from the marketplace. As the men were hauled away by other Knights, Donathon turned back to face the man who had helped him in the short conquest. He wiped his hands off the dirt that had stained them, and a smile emerged from beneath his beard. He truly did appreciate others helping, even if they were not there just to help him specifically. It was a nice and uncommon change to fight alongside another to defeat criminals. “Thankyou for your aid, it really helped. I am Ser Donathon Varius, and you are?” He asked, extending a hand to be shaken.