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This hurts me more than it hurts you. [M] [Aeyt!]

Started by Rhindeer, September 22, 2014, 10:18:34 PM

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Rhindeer

On a lone road heading into Ketra, a small drama had played out not five minutes ago. A carriage transporting a minor young nobleman had been leaving the city, and it only had two guards there to defend it. Idiots. The young noble might not be important enough to have surplus amounts of guards, but surely he had money.

And Briar, the famous, awesome, legendary bandit was in just the right place at the right time, riding her horse on the road heading into Ketra, and had come upon them.

And taken advantage.

Removing her gloves and drawing her sword, a weapon she had found on an old battlefield long ago, she wielded the weapon with a skill that wasn't hers. No, her skill belonged to Gideon, the sword's last owner, and he had been a master swordsman until someone better ran him through--all facts she had learned through her contact with the sword as she absorbed its energy, its memories, and channeled the skill of its owner. She dismounted and took out one guard with a few quick strikes; they were well trained, but they were not masters. Neither was she, and though she gained the knowledge in a strange, intuitive, instinctive way she felt in her very bones, her body was still not used to moving that way, and there was still a learning curve whenever it came to channeling her ability.

Neither guard was prepared for a common bandit to be so skilled--much less a much smaller woman.

The second soldier slipped inside her guard when she got a little too cocky and slammed his shoulder into her, knocking her to the ground with a grunt. But she acted fast, swiping his legs out from under him with a swift kick that was all her and not Gideon before bouncing to her feet and knocking him out with another hard kick to the head.

That was also all her.

With both guards out, Briar dusted off her hands--and winced a little when she realized she was bleeding.

She'd broken a nail in her fall.

"Bloody hell."

With a toss of her hair, she sheathed her sword and marched for the carriage, yanking open the curtain, to find none other than the young nobleman, cowering in his seat and whimpering in fear. "I-I don't have anything, I swear! Please! Please don't hurt me!"

"Oh, quit your blubbering! Honestly! Carrying on like you're wounded or something, when the real victim here is me! I mean, will you get a look at this shit?"

Briar waved her bare hand under the young nobleman's nose so he could get a look at her fingers--and the broken nail on her pinky, split down to the quick and bleeding just a tad. She wiggled it emphatically, just in case he didn't notice. "Behold! I bleed! I should be the one crying here, after those useless brutes assaulted me so! Not you! Really, this hurts me more than it hurts you."

Briar popped her finger in her mouth and sucked, then looked at the young noble, who looked like he was trying to do his best turtle impression. With a predatory smile, she plopped down onto the plush seat next to him and drew her dagger from her belt. Then she slung her arm around his shoulders like he was an old friend--except for the fact that she had a dagger, and it was pressed against his throat.

"Now, old friend, I'd rather remain the only injured party here, if you know what I mean. Because it would absolutely slay me should anything happen to you! That'd be so tragic! So why don't you just go ahead hand over all your jewels and rings before I cut them off your pretty little fingers, hm? And tell me where you keep your money while you're at it. I know you're not wearing everything you have. You nobles always keep secret compartments, so spit it out before I start carving my boredom into you."
Adamaris // Aderyn // Aki // Alexander // Angel // Axieva // Beatrid // Briar // Cadmus // Corryn // Einin/Owl // Emery // Fang // Faolán // Faris // Frost // Hayate // Ife // Jayari // Jirou // Juniper // Katxiel // Khaiya // Kota // Kyran // Liam // Makani // Max // Maya // Mei // Nakato // Naovi // Nasrin // Niaaki // Niamh // Noor // Pepper // Qiana // Qismat // Quinn // Raxta // Riyarin // Rook // Sachi // Sahar // Siobhan // Simonea // Sita // Song // Summer // Valor // Yasmin // Yiroa

Aeytrious

        Dirk stood in the shadow of a tree, the city nearby was a large one. Ketra, he'd learned, was the capital of Adela, and center of trade. It also boasted one of the most powerful, if not the most powerful, military's on this continent. Of course the Adelan military was spread across the country, in other cities, and various outposts, but this was the center of it's might. Bustling places made Dirk a bit nervous. They were a good place to find jobs, to find ways to do good, but there were so many people. He didn't quite understand people yet, Rit had not been thorough in educating him in that regard, and they rarely understood him.
        He was dressed as he always was, clad in black armor, much like that of his mentor, Ritousaey, wrapped in a deep black cloak, hood pulled up, and a black cloth mask that covers his nose, mouth, and chin. His grey eyes peered out at the road that ran along to the city, watching as he thought about going into such a populated area. He brushed back a few strands of gold hair that peeked out a bit from beneath his hood as a soft breeze shook them loose. At the sight of the approaching carriage, he adjusted the kukri across the small of his back, beneath his cloak. He nervously touched at the many hidden throwing daggers that were tucked into places throughout his armor, as he watched the carriage roll nearer. The hand that didn't adjust and check his other weapons was resting across the dirk hanging on his hip, and the grappling hook that hung beside it. Even though he fidgeted, he was still ready for a fight, the instinct driven into him by his training. Really, it was the sun that caused most of his nervousness. It was hard to find shadows to melt into in the sun.
        He saw the bandit approaching, and sensed her intent from her movements, as well as her confidence. He moved immediately. Justice never hesitates. He wasn't close enough to get to the carriage before the fighting was quickly concluded, but he made it just as the woman entered the carriage. Dirk checked that the two men were living, and it seemed they would survive their wounds. At least the bandit had not murdered anyone. It was just assault at this point, and highway robbery he supposed. He moved up to the carriage, the soft leather of his magic boots making not a sound as he moved up. She had conveniently left the carriage door opened as she entered so she would not be alerted to his presence. He bid his cloak darken the shadows around him and with a quick motion he reached into the compartment. His strong grip twisted the bandits held blade away from the nobles throat as his other hand came in quick. His bare knuckles collided with the woman's nose, he was not bias against gender and did not hold back, and a pinched pressure point had her dagger falling from her grip. His bracers giving him quickened movements, Dirk shifted his grip on her wrist to the front of her shirt as his he hit her in the face a second and third time. Both hands gripping her by her front he pulled her from the carriage and tossed her to the ground on her back.
        "I'm sure you're already aware," Dirk said in his usual flat tone, "but highway robbery is a crime."
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


Rhindeer

Briar was just cocky enough that she hadn't anticipated that anyone would witness her robbery. So wrapped up was she in intimidating the trembling nobleman, she didn't see, or hear, the man's rescuer arrive.

Not until a strong hand was twisting her blade away, and her nose was eating a fist.

Pain exploded in her face, bright lights flashing behind her eyes, as she was struck again and again, and then suddenly she was airborne--at least, until her back hit the ground with enough force that the air left her lungs in a whoosh. She wheezed and moaned, clutching at her nose, which was broken and pouring out a ridiculous amount of blood, as broken noses did. It dripped down her face and dribbled into her mouth, and when her head stopped reeling and she came back to her senses, she rolled over onto her side, and then pushed up onto her knees, and spit blood out to the side.

Right before she glared death up at the man that had broken her nose, and thought he was being soooo smart informing her of the very laws she was blatantly and deliberately breaking!

"Whoa, what?! REALLY? It's a fucking crime?! You've gotta be kidding me!" she gasped, pressing her bloodied hands to the sides of her face in exaggerated shock. She spit out more blood and climbed to her feet, her hand going down to the pommel of her sword. Already she could feel the rush of energy leaking from it into her, and her hand gripped the handle before drawing it with a metallic hiss.

She hated meddlers.

"Since when? I mean, that's a pretty radical statement there, buddy. You got any proof to back it up? Because you better be willing to back that up, or you better high tail it right quick and forget you saw this. In case you're wondering, the second choice is the smarter one! Not that I expect you'll take it! You look really dim!"
Adamaris // Aderyn // Aki // Alexander // Angel // Axieva // Beatrid // Briar // Cadmus // Corryn // Einin/Owl // Emery // Fang // Faolán // Faris // Frost // Hayate // Ife // Jayari // Jirou // Juniper // Katxiel // Khaiya // Kota // Kyran // Liam // Makani // Max // Maya // Mei // Nakato // Naovi // Nasrin // Niaaki // Niamh // Noor // Pepper // Qiana // Qismat // Quinn // Raxta // Riyarin // Rook // Sachi // Sahar // Siobhan // Simonea // Sita // Song // Summer // Valor // Yasmin // Yiroa

Aeytrious

        Briar's sarcasm was not totally lost on Dirk. He had encountered such before. Villains always liked to talk it seemed, and sarcasm was second only to overconfident boasting. He just didn't understand the waste of breath in a combat situation. Perhaps as a stalling tactic, but not just for the sake of the words themselves. Why say you were going to win, when actually winning would be greater proof of your prowess? He didn't care what she was saying really, and even if what she was doing was not a crime here, which was unlikely, it was still wrong. He would not let this bandit do as she pleased, it would go against who he was.
        Blood running down her face, expression twisted with disdain, she spat insults at him as she drew her blade. He sensed a change in her when she grabbed the sword, her posture changed, he could sense she was more capable now than a moment before. Magic blade? It didn't matter. Dirk did a back flip to quickly widen the space between them, flinging two of his throwing daggers at her as he whirled through the air. His hood fell back as he feet slid across the dirt road, and as soon as his feet had touched back to the ground, his dirk and kukri seemed to leap into his hands. Golden hair swirling in the light breeze, he assumed his combat stance. As always, he would not hold back. He tried not to take lives wantonly, but he would not risk his life for the sake of hers. He'd disable her as quickly as possible, but if she persisted, taking her life might be his only course. It would all depend on how determined she was to die.
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


Rhindeer

With another person's reflexes flowing through her, Briar sidestepped to miss the first dagger, and blocked the second with a quick flick of her sword. The boy was all fancy with fancy moves and shit, but so far, she wasn't impressed! She advanced on him as he assumed a combat stance, and spat out more blood. Fucking annoying broken nose!

"Looks like you're picking the stupid option. Figures," she said as she began to circle him, stance confident yet cautious. She didn't want to kill him. And she wouldn't, if she could safely disarm and disable him. She just wanted the damned money; killing a pretty thing like him was just a waste.

"Why do you even care about that guy, anyway? You know him? He's just some noble brat! He won't even notice he's been robbed! Probably has enough back home to roll around in, so what's the big deal? He can spare a little! Serves him right, anyway, for having incompetent guards! See, I'm really just helping him here! If he's smart, he'll have more guards next time, and better trained, at that!"
Adamaris // Aderyn // Aki // Alexander // Angel // Axieva // Beatrid // Briar // Cadmus // Corryn // Einin/Owl // Emery // Fang // Faolán // Faris // Frost // Hayate // Ife // Jayari // Jirou // Juniper // Katxiel // Khaiya // Kota // Kyran // Liam // Makani // Max // Maya // Mei // Nakato // Naovi // Nasrin // Niaaki // Niamh // Noor // Pepper // Qiana // Qismat // Quinn // Raxta // Riyarin // Rook // Sachi // Sahar // Siobhan // Simonea // Sita // Song // Summer // Valor // Yasmin // Yiroa

Aeytrious

        "Your justification of your actions does not make them right," Dirk said flatly. He twirled his blades in his hands as he stalked forward. His hands were moving faster than humanly possible, the bracers magic in constant effect. He brushed the blades together, their meteoric metal throwing sparks. "I'd prefer not to kill you," he told her, "I'd like to know your name, in case your death comes soon. I am Dirk."
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


Rhindeer

Briar snorted and tossed her head, the golden hoops at the end of her hair tinkling at they knocked against each other. "Blah-de-fucking-blah. Do I look like I care about what's right or wrong? Anyway, Dick--oh, sorry, Dirk--the name's Briar. Do try to remember it when I knock you silly and strip you of that armor. It looks valuable!"

And no sooner had the words left her mouth that she moved in close and thrust at him with her sword, though it was less to attack him, and more to spur him into action.
Adamaris // Aderyn // Aki // Alexander // Angel // Axieva // Beatrid // Briar // Cadmus // Corryn // Einin/Owl // Emery // Fang // Faolán // Faris // Frost // Hayate // Ife // Jayari // Jirou // Juniper // Katxiel // Khaiya // Kota // Kyran // Liam // Makani // Max // Maya // Mei // Nakato // Naovi // Nasrin // Niaaki // Niamh // Noor // Pepper // Qiana // Qismat // Quinn // Raxta // Riyarin // Rook // Sachi // Sahar // Siobhan // Simonea // Sita // Song // Summer // Valor // Yasmin // Yiroa

Aeytrious

        "Briar," Dirk parroted, "noun, one of many prickly scrambling shrubs, especially the sweetbrier and other wild roses. Am I to take it your name is a metaphor for beauty at the price of pain?" Dirk asked genuinely, "or did your parents give you the name?" Dirk easily parried Briar's thrust aside and remained in his defensive stance. He would read his opponent first, and then take action. So far, that single attack, seemed completely without conviction.
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


Rhindeer

Briar blinked at his question, then brightened with a smile. "So you're not a total dumbass after all. Yeah, it's a metaphor," she said, and promptly swung in close with a series of fierce blows and thrusts, trying to force him into action since that last feint hadn't worked.

Dirk wasn't the only one hoping to get a read on his opponent.
Adamaris // Aderyn // Aki // Alexander // Angel // Axieva // Beatrid // Briar // Cadmus // Corryn // Einin/Owl // Emery // Fang // Faolán // Faris // Frost // Hayate // Ife // Jayari // Jirou // Juniper // Katxiel // Khaiya // Kota // Kyran // Liam // Makani // Max // Maya // Mei // Nakato // Naovi // Nasrin // Niaaki // Niamh // Noor // Pepper // Qiana // Qismat // Quinn // Raxta // Riyarin // Rook // Sachi // Sahar // Siobhan // Simonea // Sita // Song // Summer // Valor // Yasmin // Yiroa

Aeytrious

        Dirk felt Briar's intensity increase as she swung and thrust at him. He still felt she was holding back, but he wasn't sure. He could tell though that she was the type to easily get riled though, so he decided to use a taunt that Rit had used on him. Since verbal taunts were cultural, and Dirk knew nothing of Briar or her culture, he went with something physical. He parried her blade, with little effort, then sheathed his dirk. With a lightning quick motion, he brought his bare hand in a slap across her face, then drew his dirk once more. Moving that quick was an effort to keep his mind up to the speed of his hand, and so he took a large step back afterward. No need to overtax himself if he didn't have to. He struck his blades against each other again throwing sparks toward Briar.
        "I really would prefer not to take your life," he told her flatly.
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


Rhindeer

Before Briar saw it coming--literally!--Dirk's hand smacked across her face, snapping her head back from the force and shock of it. She reeled, stumbling backwards, one hand pressed to her cheek. Some people claimed they saw stars when they suffered a blow, and Briar saw things, all right--but they weren't stars, they weren't flashes of light and pain. She saw images, flashing across her vision faster than she could register, faster than she could understand, mixed with intense bursts of emotion and feeling and memory, a confusing blend that flooded her mind and crammed inside her brain until it felt like it might burst, and then it was gone, lightning fast, gone as soon as his hand was off her.

It wasn't the physical pain that stung most.

Touching other people was always the worst. Objects were one thing; they were filled with stored memories. But they were also static. People? People were living and vibrant and awful--especially when she hadn't braced herself for contact.

Dazed, she staggered and nearly fell, but managed to right herself just in time. She shook herself, trying to get rid of the psychic static still buzzing in her brain like bees, and then glared knives at Dirk.

He had no idea how insulting that was, more insulting, even, than if she hadn't had her damned curse.

"Motherfucker!" she snarled, and all bets were off then, because he'd touched her bare skin, he'd smacked her across the face and violated her head with his damned humanness, and now the bastard was going down! She charged at him then, no longer testing him, now fully intent on dispatching him as she came at him with swift, fierce swings that clearly said she was out for blood now.
Adamaris // Aderyn // Aki // Alexander // Angel // Axieva // Beatrid // Briar // Cadmus // Corryn // Einin/Owl // Emery // Fang // Faolán // Faris // Frost // Hayate // Ife // Jayari // Jirou // Juniper // Katxiel // Khaiya // Kota // Kyran // Liam // Makani // Max // Maya // Mei // Nakato // Naovi // Nasrin // Niaaki // Niamh // Noor // Pepper // Qiana // Qismat // Quinn // Raxta // Riyarin // Rook // Sachi // Sahar // Siobhan // Simonea // Sita // Song // Summer // Valor // Yasmin // Yiroa

Aeytrious

        The slap Dirk brought across Briar's face was more staggering than he had expected it to be. Perhaps there was some unseen variable here, or perhaps he had struck her harder than he thought. Had he stayed in close he could have dealt a death blow to her then and there. His intention was not her death though, so it was of little consequence. After Briar recovered from her stagger, and threw at him a curse, her movements had picked up speed and strength. It seemed now she was giving it her all. It was not a struggle, not like fighting a nearly omnipotent being, but at least it was no longer a bore.
        Dirk parried and dodged, moving on the defensive, his two blades dancing with unmatched speed and grace, leaving swirls of color in their wakes. He struck the meteoric metal hard against Briars sword, hard enough that she'd feel the vibrations up her arms. He didn't have to back peddle much to keep her at bay, relying more on his own quick hands to turn her thrusts aside. Occasionally he'd catch a small opening in her relentless assault, and he'd slip in to nick her, making small cuts in her cloths, drawing tiny beads of blood from her flesh. The blood would have been more useful to Dirk if he'd had any aptitude at the soul magic Rit had tried to teach the boy. He could have given the boy the aptitude, but Rit said that would be cheating. It made no difference to Dirk, the cuts would add up. Eventually Briar would slow. Tiny as they were, in multitude, they would act as raindrops eroding mountains.
        "If you surrender," Dirk said to Briar, during her ferocious assault, "it will spare you much pain."
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


Rhindeer

Each small nick made Briar's breath hitch, made her flinch, but it also only pissed her off more, because he was playing with her and wasn't even taking this seriously! He was messing with her, making it clear that he could have done more damage if he wanted to, but was choosing not to.

Unfortunately for Briar, having the stolen knowledge of how to fight gave her skill, certainly, but not stamina or strength. That all had to come from her own body, and she didn't have the same build or experience as the dead man whose sword she wielded. He had been a large man, one built like a house, with decades of experience on a petty thief like her.

Stealing his technical knowledge also didn't give her his patience or wisdom.

Shallow rivulets of blood from the shallow cuts were running down her arms, staining her breeches, blossoming on her shirt. She ignored them, because they were nothing, and only increased the ferocity of her assault.

"Surrender? You're funny," she spat at him, right before she went in for another fierce series of jabs, thrusts, and powerful swings, never attacking the same area twice, trying to keep him on his toes and find a good opening. "Not 'funny ha ha', but 'funny you make me sick'!"

...Literally.

She realized, perhaps too late, that she was starting to feel unwell. She realized it when the first bout of dizziness hit, as fatigue began to set into limbs that weren't used to working this way. She'd used the sword before, but not against people this experienced, so those fights had been shorter.

She'd never fought long enough to find the edges of her endurance, and now she was really starting to feel the aches in her muscles, the sting of the cuts, the exhaustion...

She stumbled, but managed to get her sword up in time to parry a blow, and she tried to use that motion to move inside. "If you surrender," she breathed, "I might not kill you."
Adamaris // Aderyn // Aki // Alexander // Angel // Axieva // Beatrid // Briar // Cadmus // Corryn // Einin/Owl // Emery // Fang // Faolán // Faris // Frost // Hayate // Ife // Jayari // Jirou // Juniper // Katxiel // Khaiya // Kota // Kyran // Liam // Makani // Max // Maya // Mei // Nakato // Naovi // Nasrin // Niaaki // Niamh // Noor // Pepper // Qiana // Qismat // Quinn // Raxta // Riyarin // Rook // Sachi // Sahar // Siobhan // Simonea // Sita // Song // Summer // Valor // Yasmin // Yiroa

Aeytrious

        Dirk was confused. Briar obviously had technical skill, but she seemed to be waning sooner than he would have expected. The amount of time it took to learn the patterns and combos she was using would have built up her strength and endurance. It didn't make sense to him, and she should have backed off and moved to a defensive stance with the amount of nicks he was leaving on her. Instead she moved forward inside his weak thrust. As she moved forward, he redirected her blade aside and brought his elbow into the side of her head.
        He stepped back from her after the connection so that he could survey his surroundings freely. A sudden gust of wind blew back the hood of Dirk's cloak, and he noticed that the unconscious footman was rising from the ground. With Briar's efforts slowing, Dirk sheathed his long thrusting dagger. He only needed his kukri to keep up a sufficient defense.
        With his free hand he reached up and pulled down his mask, now completely exposing his pale face and flaxen hair. His expression remained stoic as he watched the guard check on his wounded companion. From where he was fighting with Briar, it seemed to Dirk that the other guard would survive his wounds. Now that he was sure his companion would live, the footman went to check on the noble in the carriage. If he did not end this fight soon the guard may come to assist him, and then Briar would likely not survive.
        "This is going to hurt," Dirk told Briar plainly, "but it's for your own good. I'd rather have to tend to your wounds than let those guards kill you." He swept back his cloak as he sheathed his kukri, and spun, sweeping the fabric across at her. When the motion was complete, he threw two daggers he had pulled from hidden places. A back flip to get more space between them, and four more of Dirk's projectiles were flying out at Briar. He aimed for her shoulders, hands, and feet. Wounds that would disable but not kill her. As long as she didn't move into them poorly, or parry one into an artery, he be able to disarm her and finish the fight.
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


Rhindeer

Briar was still reeling from the blow to her head--no skin to skin this time, but purely from the physical force of it. She staggered, lights flashing behind her eyes and only made worse by her fatigue, and she had only just begun to recover when Dirk made his final attack.

She didn't have time to dodge or react before she had a face full of cape. Agitated, she shook her head to dislodge it--just in time for Dirk's daggers to hit.

Yeah.

That fucking hurt.

Two went into her hands, and she cried out and dropped the sword as her muscles spasmed in pain. Two more in her shoulders and another two in her feet had her dropping to the ground. Cursing wildly, she tore the first two from her hands, and started plucking the other two from her shoulders even as pain raced down her arms from the injured muscle.
Adamaris // Aderyn // Aki // Alexander // Angel // Axieva // Beatrid // Briar // Cadmus // Corryn // Einin/Owl // Emery // Fang // Faolán // Faris // Frost // Hayate // Ife // Jayari // Jirou // Juniper // Katxiel // Khaiya // Kota // Kyran // Liam // Makani // Max // Maya // Mei // Nakato // Naovi // Nasrin // Niaaki // Niamh // Noor // Pepper // Qiana // Qismat // Quinn // Raxta // Riyarin // Rook // Sachi // Sahar // Siobhan // Simonea // Sita // Song // Summer // Valor // Yasmin // Yiroa

Aeytrious

        Dirk stepped forward as Briar was pulling the daggers from her wounds. He grabbed at one the daggers in her shoulder and twisted it fiercely. As the pain was registering for Briar, Dirk moved behind her and struck her hard on the back of the head, in the hopes of knocking her out. Hopefully it wouldn't take more than the single blow. With success, he planned on throwing the woman over his shoulder and lugging her into the woods nearby. Without the assailant nearby, the footman, would likely take his companion, and his charge, back to the city to visit a chirurgeon, or other healer.
        Since he had only two guards with him, the nobleman would probably not have the wealth or power to create a search for Briar. That meant she was likely safe from violent retribution. She was still a criminal though, and Dirk would have to deal with that. She needed to pay for her crimes, but in a fair way, with a trial, not with wonton violence, and an impromptu execution. He'd have to figure out what authorities he needed to take her to.
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


Rhindeer

If the blow to her head hadn't knocked her out, Briar likely would have passed out from the sheer agony of his vicious knife twist. She hadn't fully registered the pain of being stabbed as it shocked her body, but she did register the twisting! She screamed, but it was abruptly cut off, and she slumped forward and to the side as her eyes rolled back into her head.
Adamaris // Aderyn // Aki // Alexander // Angel // Axieva // Beatrid // Briar // Cadmus // Corryn // Einin/Owl // Emery // Fang // Faolán // Faris // Frost // Hayate // Ife // Jayari // Jirou // Juniper // Katxiel // Khaiya // Kota // Kyran // Liam // Makani // Max // Maya // Mei // Nakato // Naovi // Nasrin // Niaaki // Niamh // Noor // Pepper // Qiana // Qismat // Quinn // Raxta // Riyarin // Rook // Sachi // Sahar // Siobhan // Simonea // Sita // Song // Summer // Valor // Yasmin // Yiroa

Aeytrious

        Dirk unceremoniously pulled the remaining daggers from Briar's flesh, letting the blades fall to the ground. He quickly readjusted his cloak, and mask, then threw Briar over his shoulder like a sack of grain. He was not pleased that she was bleeding on him, but he knew it was his own fault for wounding her so much. With her sword in hand, he moved quickly to the trees. He had passed a stone basin earlier in the day, that looked to have been used by an ancient people. Dirk took Briar there, and set her gently in the center of the concave stone. Then he undressed her. When she awoke she'd likely be furious, but he needed to see all her wounds, and her clothing was in the way.
        When she seemed to be stirring, Dirk used a mixture of opium and hemlock to send her into a deeper sleep. Stripped nude, Briar's wounds were easy to see and tend to. Her bare chest, and exposed sex, did not elicit embarrassment or arousal from Dirk. It wasn't that he didn't find her nude form appealing, he just didn't have the social knowledge to realize that he should feel any way other than clinical. Dirk started by bathing Briar. He used his magic heating stones, to warm water from his magic decanter, in a steel basin, and sponged Briar clean. He next sutured the severe wounds from his daggers with fine silk thread. He applied a healing salve to the sutures, and wrapped them in white linen bandages. He applied the salve to all the small nicks he had left in her as well, and the little trickles of blood that had yet to cease, finally did.
        He did not wish for her to be uncomfortable as she rested, so he did not bind her hands or feet to prevent her from running should she rise. Instead he pulled a plush bedroll from within his his well worn Haversack, and laid it out on the edge of the stone. He shifted Briar's nude form there, and then fetched through his Haversack for a temporary garment. A fancy black silk robe with gold embroidery found his fingers and it was large enough for Briar to swim in. He pulled it on her as gently as possible, tying the belt loosely around her middle, then set her down to sleep. After giving her another, larger, dose of his sedative, he moved off to tend to a camp. It may have only been mid day, but she would need lots of rest to recover from her wounds.
        While Briar slept, Dirk caught a large fish, snared a small rabbit, and found a quail nest. He rooted around for some wild vegetables, and found some edible berries. He gathered firewood, and built a fire in the center of the concave stone, close enough to warm Briar, and large enough to cook with. He stewed the rabbit with wild carrots, radishes, and a single potato. The fish he braised in a tomato and garlic sauce from supplies he carried with him. The quail he roasted on a spit, slathered in a sweet, spicy, smokey sauce that Rit had made for him. The bottle renewed itself so he would never run out. While he cooked, Dirk also washed Briar's clothing, even her smallclothes, and mended all the cuts and tears in them. He hung them on a quickly improvised rack near the fire, to dry. Her boots were ruined, but he patched the leather the best he could, until he could make her new ones. He even sharpened and polished her sword.
        Tasks completed, Dirk just sat across the fire from Briar, food almost finished cooking, waiting for her to awaken. He knew he'd likely have to subdue her, but that in her greatly weakened condition it wouldn't be hard. Hopefully she would eat, and let him care for her until she was healed. After going to all this trouble, he wasn't sure what he'd do with her. She was a criminal after all. Perhaps the torturous fight he'd put her through was punishment enough? She hadn't killed anyone, and she'd nearly bled to death herself. He'd have to decide after they properly got to know each other.
        Even though the magic of Dirk's ring prevented the need to eat, he found the smell of the food he cooked for briar tempting him. Hopefully she'd wake soon, so he could ask her how she liked her eggs and they could start eating. The moon was out now, she should wake any time.
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


Rhindeer

The first thing that registered for Briar was that she felt like fucking shit. She didn't know what shit felt like, given it didn't have emotions, but if she were shit, she was pretty sure this is what it would be like.

She came to with a groan, because everything ached and throbbed and her head felt like it had been packed with nails and cotton. Cracking her eyes open, she could see the night sky through a mess of branches and leaves, but the light around her was warm and flickering. A fire? She reached up to rub at her face with her hands, and found them bandaged and sore and otherwise bare, without her gloves. For a second, this confused her and she stared at them, turning them this way and that, the tattoos on her palms hidden. What the...?

And then memory began to filter down through her cotton-filled brain and she remembered. She'd been fighting some prick, and he'd stabbed her a bunch, and then...

And then she was here.

A flash of fear went through her, but she didn't jolt or gasp, and instead held very still even as it curled in her belly. What the fuck? Where the fuck was she? She wasn't tied up, which was confusing, and she was laying on something soft and plush and--

Wait.

What the fuck was she wearing?

Or rather, what the fuck wasn't she wearing?!

The fabric felt silky against her skin. Silky. And went she reached down with a tentative hand, she found that, beneath the silk, her smallclothes were gone.

MOTHERFUCKER!

Her face burned with realization, the realization that someone had stripped her down and put her in some silky black monstrosity, and with it came a burning sense of violation. Casting a look around the area, she soon caught sight of the culprit, sitting at the fire.

It was the blond asshole she'd been fighting.

The fucker had actually brought her here, stripped her down, and fixed her wounds? What the hell?!

What else had he done while she was out?!

"Motherfucker!" she said, and though she had meant to throw it out viciously, to yell it at him, and to say some other choice words, it came out as a dry, weak croak. She struggled to sit up, even as pain flared up, and swayed where she sat, unsteady. The drugs he'd given her had faded enough for her to wake, but were not out of her system, and they left her feeling dizzy and loopy. "The hell you do to me? What am I wearing?! Goddamn creep!"
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Aeytrious

        "You're wearing something clean," Dirk said, standing from his spot by the fire. "Your clothes will be dry by morning," he told her, "and I've patched them up as well as washed them." He stirred the stew, with a ladle and pulled a bowl from his bag. "I've made you a bit of food. You'll need plenty of fuel for the healing. If you want to be able to hold a sword again soon, you'll need to take some medicine I have. How do you take your eggs? I haven't cooked them yet, since I didn't know your preference."
        The awkwardness of the situation escaped Dirk completely, and his bland tone probably did little to calm Briar. He was alert, and ready to take action if he needed to, but for now he gave her facts, and hoped that would be enough. Why she called him a creep he didn't understand at all though. He had beaten her in combat, sure, but he had also saved her, and tended to her. How did that make him a creep.
        "What would you like to start with? Fish, quail, or rabbit stew?"
Guild
The Soot Wolves

Characters
Ryk/Theodore/Rufus
ArjanDirkElijahGeldGulliusHiram
HerewardKheelanKurohanaLex
MalilaMelyndariaMowellesaQuinnlyn
SehrayanahTiberiusValencia
Ritousaey


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