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Gun Runners (DragonSong)

Started by Kingfisher, January 21, 2018, 05:21:14 PM

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Kingfisher

Joshua had hoped more of Karian's lackies would have come out of the cave, considering how many were there.  It would take the Farret a dozen trips to collect all the guns alone...or rather, it would have.  With a thought, there was an explosion and dozens of guns went off in unison.  The Farret was dead in an instant, the wagon full of holes as the blast scared the ox into a run.  It would not be hard to catch later.

Now the smith found himself trapped on a rising platform of earth with Tara, her fromer lover and Karian.  "Well, this changes things," he said in a mocking tone.  Dropping one gun, the mage quickly hoisted the other into position.  Leveling it at the trio, he said, "Here's how things are going to go."  With the snap of his fingers, a spark took form and hovered over the weapon's pan.  "You are going to let the girl go and I might - might - let you live to see tomorrow.  At this range, I can't miss...not with two shots."  He then waited for the response.

DragonSong

Marie, Karian, and Tara had all be tossed aside by the explosion of dirt, but Karian managed to keep a grip on Tara's arm. None of them even noticed the initial sound of gunfire, ears ringing from the violent outburst of the bard's magic. She and Karian rolled over each other, scrabbling in the dirt, each trying to get the upper hand.

They both froze, panting, at Joshua's voice. The bandit looked up with a snarl, one hand pinning Tara's wrists above her head and the other at her throat. She kicked and struggled, choking, but he was stronger than her, and without her voice she couldn't access her magic as easily.

He sneered at the gunsmith and pressed down harder on Tara's throat. "Why? What's the little whore worth to you, huh? Just walk away, before my boys come out and make you regret this."

Kingfisher

Joshua remained silent for a moment, looking down the sight of his arquebus.  He had trouble ticking the higher priority target.  Karian was the obvious choice, looming over the mage-girl and pressing on her throat but something told the smith that the other woman might prove just as dangerous if she turned out to be a mage.  He could hit one of them, but the other could kill Tara as he raised his other gun.

Trying to be subtle, Joshua had managed to catch the barrel of his second gun with his foot, expecting he might have to kick it up to his hands.  Where it rested now, it would be a bitch to aim...but he gave it a shot, shifting his toes as he tried to level the weapon at Karian, the smith tried to buy time.  "You're not to bright, are you.  Those guys down there?  They work for you because you made them certain...promises."  Smirking at the thug, Joshua continued: "What do you think they'll do when you're no longer around to deliver?  Sure, they might say they'll avenge you but really?  Are you that clueless about what you are?"  There was the ultimatum.  He did not really care whether the man bit or not, he just needed to hit both targets in quick succession.

DragonSong

Tara choked, gasping, and Karian snarled above her, fingers tightening on her throat. His eyes flickered, calculating.

"I hope she's worth it," he spat at Joshua, and rolled away from her. Tara tried to leap up, throwing her hands out to chant a spell- but before she could there was an icy pain in her side and she stumbled, eyes going wide.

Marie smirked, twirling away from her to chase after a retreating Karian, the dagger she gripped bloodied nearly to the hilt. Tara swayed on her feet, desperately reaching for her magic but unable to truly grasp it. Her knees shook, then gave out and she collapsed to the earth, gasping as pain pulsed through her.

Kingfisher

When he saw the woman stab Tara, Joshua was shocked.  Not that she was so bloodthirsty, he had long since come to the conclusion that those who sided with Karian had no sense of decency.  What surprised her was that she seemed to have no sense of reason.  Stabbing Tara would prove to be a costly mistake.

As the bard collapsed, the gunman took his shot, floating spark touching to the loaded pan.  At this distance, she stood no chance.  The explosion hurled the the ball, close to an inch in diameter, over Tara's shoulder, toward the bard's former lover.  By then, first gun was falling as the fire mage kicked the second into his hand.

At the moment, though, the smith's main concern was helping Tara.  Rushing to her side, he looked at the wound.  As paniced as he was, knowing she was in danger, the young man kept his head.  "Tara," he called, to ensure she was listening.  "I can stop the bleeding by I'll need to use my fire.  Do you understand?"  Melting flesh closed was a tricky process and excruciatingly painful.  She would need to brace herself.

DragonSong

Tara could barely focus through the pain, but she thought she heard a gunshot, and a scream, and maybe running feet, movement in the caverns. Joshua's face swam fuzzily into focus above her and she tried to say something, anything.

She wound up choking on blood. Her eyes were wide and scared as she stared up at him, and weakly grabbed for his sleeve.

Am I dying? She coughed, red dripping from her lips, and rasped out, "Just...do it."

Kingfisher

Blue light wrapped around the man's fingertips before it turned to pale flames.  Holding his hand toward the wound, the fire moved like tiny snakes, slithering into they cash, melting layers of flesh from the inside out.  Joshua was careful to avoid doing too much damage, sealing the wound on layer at a time.

Tara would be left with small burn scar.  It would be easy enough to remove later with a real healer but for the time being, it was the best he could manage.  Leveing the gun at Karian, he said, "I'll be taking the girl.  Try an stop me and I can still end you."  In spite of his assertion earlier, there was a chance the men in the cave would still kill the pair if Karian died, if not out of loyalty then out of rage at the loss of their meal ticket.  Looking too Tara once more, Joshua asked, "Can you stand?  We may need to get out of here."  After all, what use was revenge if you died trying to attain it.

DragonSong

Tara's back arched and she screamed as pain lanced through her. Her hand gripping his sleeve turned into a steel claw, scratching at him as she scrabbled for some sort of anchor to the physical, something that wasn't burning agony.

Then it was over and she lay there, gasping. With a groan she tried to push herself up, twisting painfully to snarl in Karian's direction. "Murderer! I'll-"

She tried to stand and lurched sideways, her knees giving out. The bandit smirked, briefly, but his eyes were fixed on Joshua's gun. "You'd best run now," he spat. "Before my boys back me up."

Kingfisher

"Good luck with that," Joshua taunted in return.  Regardless of his bravado, the smith slipped his weapon over his shoulder for support, freeing one hand to help Tara to her feet.  The spark loomed threateningly over the pan, ready to ignite the powder.

"Perhaps discretion is the better part of valor," the man wispered to the bard.  He did his best to support her, offering a shoulder to act as a crutch as he lead her back toward where his wagon had stopped.  It would not be fast, but if Joshua stayed vigilant, the pair could keep going without needing to stop.  His ox had better stamina than a man or a horse...

DragonSong

"No." She shoved weakly at his shoulder as he tugged her toward the wagon. "No, no. I can't just let him go, I'm so close-"

Her magic fluttered around her weakly, small jets of sparks and gusts of wind that played with the ends of her hair. With a wordless cry, she threw her hand toward Karian, trying desperately to get any sort of spell to just work.

A flash of cutting wind for the briefest moment was all she could manage as her strength flagged and her knees threatened to collapse. Her eyes rolled back in her head and with a last flash of magic- a brief twist of fire that scorched across Karian's face- she fell unconscious.

Kingfisher

At Karian's expense, Joshua decided to add a little insult to injury, weaving the Tara's flames into a lily-shaped brand where one eye had been.  That was his hope, anyway.  The smith decided not to stick around to see his little art project.


The ox was hardly quick, but it proved reliably.  With a gunner perched on the roof of a wagon, using mage-fire to drive the beast forward, few sane men would give chase and Joshua soon joined Tara in the seat, taking of the ox' reigns.  The man was unsure when she might wake but in the meantime, he'd make for a village.  Population centers would prove to be safe places to lay low, and if worst came to worst, he'd put them up in a room for the night...

OoC
I'll let you choose where we end up.
[close]

DragonSong

Tara had no idea how long she was unconscious, but when she finally managed to open her eyes she found herself laying in the bed of the wagon, and the roofs of a small village were visible through the gaps in the canvas.

"J-" She coughed, throat rasping and sore. "Joshua?"

Kingfisher

When he heard the bard call out to him, Joshua pulled his wagon to a stop.  He had moved the girl to the relative comfort of the interior once they were reliably under way.  It was a bit crowded, given his profession.  There was an anvil, toolcase and many purified steel ingots, as well as a portable trip hammer.

Kneeling over her, the smith grabbed his water skin.  "Here," Joshau said, helping Tara sit up.  Pulling out the cork with his teeth, he offered the sack to his patient.  "Drink this," he ordered, holding the skin to her lips.

Joshua refrained from saying too much about what had happened.  She would doubtlessly be angry Karian was still alive.  The scar they had left him, and the death of Tara's betrayer could prove a nice consolation.

DragonSong

She guzzled the water gratefully, then pulled away with a soft gasp. Trying to push herself up, she groaned, "Wh- what happened? I can't..."

Everything was a little fuzzy. She couldn't quite remember what had happened after she'd been stabbed.

Kingfisher

Joshua took back the water, recorking the vessel so that he could set it aside.  Fixing Tara with his most understanding expression, the smith said, "We didn't get Karian.  I figured you might prefer living over revenge if you had to choose."  Pressing a fingertip to her side, the fire mage continued.  "Not for nothing though, the guy lost a couple of peons and probably one eye, so I guess there's that..."

Hoping to transition to more pressing matters, the smith asked, "What about you?  Holding up okay, all considered?"  It was likely a dumb question, but he was willing to take her ire for a moment.

DragonSong

Her eyes closed and she leaned back again, gritting her teeth. "Fuck." With a sudden burst of movement, she slammed her fist into the bed of the wagon, uncaring of the pain it sent shooting through her side. "Fuck!"

Panting lightly, she rolled onto her side and tried to push herself up, then collapsed back with a soft groan. "Damnit," she whispered, eyes clenched shut. For a moment, she sounded dangerously close to tears, and when she opened her eyes they were over bright. "I was so close."

Then she took a breath and curled in on herself a bit, preparing to make another attempt to get up. "I'm fine," she ground out, not looking at him. "Where the hell are we? How long was I out?"

Kingfisher

"You were out for quite a while," Joshua explained.  "I brought us north of that last town so we're pretty close to the border now."

The smith took a beat, then, glancing at Tara's scar, he said, "I asked about a healer and the villagers here said they have someone who might be able to do a better job than me."  Offering another hand to help the bard stand, Joshua added, "We're here now, if you wanted her to take a look at you."

DragonSong

"I don't need a damn healer." She smacked his hand away and tried to stand- and promptly dropped back with a cry of pain, followed by several imaginative curses. "Fine."

Glowering, she grabbed his hand and allowed him to help her to her feet. "Maybe I do need a damn healer."

Kingfisher

Joshua smirked at the bard's reaction.  She was a proud woman, but pride was never enough to survive on.  As Tara was able to stand, the smith ducked under her arm, supporting her with his shoulder.  He would have outright carried her, but he doubted, even in her current state, she would let him get away with that.  Instead, he lead the girl out of the wagon, careful to avoid aggravating her wound.

Inside the healer's office, he found a dark room.  There were shelves all around with various salves and potions, ingredients, vessels.  Toward the back of the room was a curtain, situated behind the counter.  "Hello?" Joshua called.  He got no respons and wondered if the proprietor had stepped out for a time.  He decided to head for the curtain, if only to check he was not wasting time here.

DragonSong

Tara bit down hard on the inside of her cheek to hold in another torrent of cursing as he helped her limp into the healer's office. That wound hurt.

"Just fucking fantastic," she muttered as it seemed they were alone in the room. "I decide to see a healer and no one is fucking here." Grumbling, she tried to pull away from his supporting shoulder, then yelped and leaned back into him again as her knees threatened to give.

"Damnit. Don't suppose you know how to use any of this stuff?" She nodded toward the medical supplies. Maybe they could just take what they needed and figure out how to use it.

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