• Completed • [Venora] A Test of Perserverance

Kayleigh's unusual follower makes another appearance.

The seven Duchies of Central Rynmere and their respective baronies, cities, towns, villages, and landmarks each overseen by a Duke of one of the seven noble families and ultimately controlled by the King of Rynmere.
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Kayleigh
Posts: 230
Joined: Tue Dec 06, 2016 8:28 am
Race: Human
Profession: Freelancer
Renown: 49
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[Venora] A Test of Perserverance

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Ashan 13 718; Late Afternoon

Location: The Road to Andaris

Her time in Venora's lands were interesting while she remained there however hardly effective, as her search there hardly turned up anything beneficial in all honesty. She hadn't made it obvious while there but her search for mages didn't turn up like she'd hope, particularly when she tried to poke around where the nobles were tucked away at. Quite quickly she'd been ushered to leave without any real business there, thus she determined the search there rather pointless to continue afterwards. Thus she retracted her steps as she would usually do and therefore, made her way back to Andaris since that seemed a more likely place to get something. Some kind of answer that she personally sought in regards to this group a few mages were associated with.

She continued to hike along the muddied trail with her hood raised, the cloak used to protect her from what small droplets of rain sprayed the air. It had been slightly less chillier since she departed, so that remained a sure tell sign Ashan's warmth would soon hit these cold lands. She hoped in earnest that'd be soon so that she could travel around in warmer weather, and not have to rely on layers to keep her frame warm and dry. Her pale blue eyes flourished as they scanned the road ahead, a couple of figures before her stood close to where her latest scruple had been. She remembered that Trial well, as the long night enshrouded the bandit gang that assailed her caravan.

Well... Not her's. But the farmer she accompanied had seemed inspired to fight back just as she did, all thanks to that timely intervention Qylios demonstrated before. She proved leery as she couldn't determine whether these two figures were friendly people, or possibly more bandits waiting waiting to pester helpless souls. They were certainly getting out of hand these Trials. She kept a hand on the hilt of her saber as she started to draw closer towards them, her eyes narrowed as she noticed the two were awfully close to one another. The one she could see more of stood with a dark shroud over his upper half, while she could see onyx colored leggings that appeared to be armor. Whoever was in front of him though she couldn't see, as seemed to tremble uncontrollably in place before the first man.

Was that... light? Some sort of mist seemed to spout from his mouth towards the hood of the cloaked figure, as what once must've been a bandit seemed to convulse in place. Until finally he stopped as the mist was no more, and the body of that man toppled into the dirt without a single sign of life in him. "What-" She gasped in alarm with her hand now firmly gripped on her saber, her eyes warily upon the cloaked murderer as he slowly started to turn around.

"Well," He muttered with a recognizable tone, "look who's still alive; poking around where they don't belong."

"You!" Kayleigh immediately recognized him for the criminal he was, the strange hooded man she'd hope to learn more of sooner or later. The mage who seemed to be manipulating Higan! "How dare you! What did you do?!" She demanded with a hop back away from where she stood, her arms slipped through the straps of her bag to allow her to toss it aside. Finally with her frame no longer held down by the weighty material, she drew her saber eagerly as the blade's metal edge rang from the pull.

"Me? Nothing. This miserable filth thought he could extort, therefore I made him a better offer he refused. This is was just the other option he chose." He shrugged uncaring of the fact the bandit lied dead, Kayleigh almost spat in disgust as she held her saber protectively.

"So what? You just have the right to deem who lives and who dies?!"

"Why not." He mused as the shadow of his cloak still veiled his face. "You certainly don't seem to know when to quit."

"What's that supposed to mean? Is that supposed to frighten me?" Kayleigh tested with a glare as she still stood defensively in her stance, her heart thudded loudly while the blade hung still before her. "You're a mage but you don't scare me. How you've managed to avoid Rynmere's hunters though-"

"Those scum couldn't catch me." He quickly detested as reached underneath the back of his cloak behind his waist. "And you no longer have a purpose in the master's ambitions. Therefore I get to collect on what I've been wanting for a while now."

"Which is?!"

"Your life." He threatened as he slowly brandished a hooked sword from underneath. Kayleigh caught her breath as she reassured her hold over the hilt of her saber.

"Try if you must! I'll be glad to end you and your influence over Higan!" She scolded with her blade moved from her front to her left, the sound of mud sloshed under her boots as she charged in his direction. She heard a chuckle resonate from the hooded man as he barely even moved, his stance more rigid compared to how he held himself before. He wanted her to attack?! She couldn't relent now after her dash towards him, not with the amount of ferocity she held in her assault against him. Sure enough her blade hit against the metal of his own hard as Kayleigh finally found herself able to stop, only to be reached for as the hooded individual tried to grapple at her cloak. Yet he missed her collar just barely.

She tried to kick into him but the attempt was instead used to pivot and pull herself into a cartwheel away, as the clasp of her cloak pulled loose to release her from his grasp just moments after he pulled her in close. Both her hands and her saber were covered in mud as she managed to get away successfully, her outfit exposed to the elements as she watched him throw the fabric aside. "Useless." He taunted just before he pulled the hooked sword up and into a thrust as he lunged forward, Kayleigh quickly angled her saber so the blade went downward as she rotated it into a flourish. The blade parried her enemy's weapon with a loud clang as he nearly slid into her, his sword arm pulled into her direction to attempt another swing at her shoulder.

Kayleigh nearly gasped as she failed to suspect how quick his reflexes were, her own suddenly tested as she ducked into another spin beneath his swing. The hooked blade soared over her form as a few locks of her hair seemed to hit it's edge, particles of the strands immediately cut loose as she pivoted into another swing from her left. The hooded man dodged and threw his free hand into her direction, the target being her face if she didn't manage to pull back in just the nick of time. Her head swam from all the constant spirals and motions she pulled, her mind and body still not used to the rigorous tolls of combat. But she couldn't falter! With her sword arm brought over to her left from behind she nearly struck a blow into him, until he brought his own hooked sword to catch her's in one of the niches.

"Nice try." He continued to pester as he flicked his wrist at an angle that yanked her blade away, her entire form thrown off balance as she struggled to keep the weapon in hand. "You're surprisingly decent for someone so weak." Quickly she turned to face him once more with a spiteful scowl, surprise in her eyes as she saw his weapon held at point blank over her shoulder. "It's been fun watching you squirm."

"Pff, please!" She jaunted towards him with a stomp into his foot, her toes then curled to pull hook his heel as she yanked his leg forward. Sure enough this created an opening as he teetered forward a little, the edge of his sword just lightly grazed the skin on the back of her neck. Yet she had him. With an hand gripped at the shoulder of his weapon arm and her foot used to pull against his heel, he tumbled around into her kill zone as she brought the saber into him with her left hand. Quickly she once more pivoted clockwise with her saber's edge against his torso, the blade briefly caught in whatever armor he wore as she pulled away intensely. She heard him grunt and hiss at the reversal she pulled, and retreated with her blade propped over her right forearm in a defensive stance.

The hooded man seemed to remain on his feet although barely, a hand at his side as it looked as though his armor had been pierced. Blood seemed to trickle as it covered his gauntlet, which meant she could actually injure and possibly even kill him. Good! She went in for the offensive as the blade was turned and angled downward, after her sword arm rose to join both of her hands on the hilt of her weapon. She'd end this now if she could! Her fury and spite put all into one attack, Kayleigh rushed forward to smite him with the full edge of her saber. The weapon flashed as it shot downward from it's arc, and moved in for the killing strike over the hood of the mysterious man. Yet he reacted.... just in time.

With his weapon brandished to catch her saber once more in one of the niches of his blade, he angled it just so to where the saber snapped from the hard collision. Kayleigh's blade... broke into two separate pieces as she still held the lower half, while the rest of it flung away from the force of impact. Surprise filled her eyes as her situation hit her suddenly, along with something else she didn't see coming. His shadow. Something sinister moved from beneath his form, a creature that growled heavily as it lunged into her with great force. Kayleigh couldn't help but scream at the force of impact, as silence followed when she felt the air in her lunges knocked completely out. Her vision hazed as everything seemed to blur in one single moment, and she felt her back hit the squishy sediment the two fought on.

When she gasped and stirred for recovery, the cloudiness in her eyes lessened as she saw what had hit her. A shadowy creature layered with thick muscle, fairly reminiscent to a body builder's own heavy form just about. Yet it's face looked wrapped in bandages save for it's mouth, and instead of having a pair of legs it appeared to float with a tendril tail of darkness. Was it a ghost? A monster of nightmares that protected him? "I told you I had this."

"Sorry... Looked liked you needed a hand." The thing snorted to the hooded figure as he merely stood there indifferent. He shrugged and moved in with his sword clutched firmly, about to raise it as he loomed over Kayleigh's helpless figure. She felt so scared... So petrified. It was almost like her encounter... with the Soranaar she barely survived out in Gauthrel. She had help to get her to safety then... now she had... no one... This was it. This really was...

"Hmph." The figure hesitated after his sword-breaker rose, the blade slowly lowered as he seemed to back off. "You know what. Never mind." He muttered coldly almost in aggravation. "Consider yourself on probation." He warned with a turn away from her, his weapon sheathed back at his waist as he walked to his hovering guardian once more. He reached at the air next to him in a gesture and for a moment the air spurred, a dark portal created as the very space around it fizzed and popped menacingly.

"Next time," He added as his hood turned towards her, "you won't be so lucky. Let's go." He bluntly ordered to the shadowy monster as he started to walk towards the gaping hole, his protective creature merely faded away as he floated behind after him. Somehow... Kayleigh had the sense that the creature eyed her before they left together, as the portal shuttered to a fast close the moment they were both gone from her presence. Had... that just happened? She weakly crawled onto her knees and sat there, her eyes still full of shock as she tried to understand what just happened. He had let her live? Was it because his pet guardian intervened? She felt the back of her neck tingle all of a sudden, and so she reached back to feel the nick she bravely risked earlier.

At the sight of her blood on her own fingertips, she winced and closed her eyes tightly; another scream anxiously released from her lips as she sat there. It was not a scream of fear or pain, but of anger and bitterness over how easily she'd given up.
word count: 2235
"Can you tell me what hurts more? Is it remembering... or forgetting?"


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