OOC(Updated):
The blazing inferno cast an ideal, tangerine light across the area, illuminating almost everything within range of the caravan and clearly revealing the positions of the travelers who resided not too far from it. Tobias had once again attempted to play mind games with the men prior to conflict. It was perhaps an attempt to lull them into a fit of anger and behave more recklessly in combat, even if more aggressively, Tarquin thought. Or was he stalling? What could he possibly be stalling for though? No help would come. No-one would just happen upon this scenario in this weather, especially when they were practically half way from both Blackbrush AND Drybone.
Tobias' confidence was mildly unsettling. However, should he truly have sought to mentally destabilize the men then it would all have been in vain this time. Tarquin had abandoned his "passive" approach and was now prepared to engage in battle. No words would sway him at this point nor would they easily disrupt his focus. Amadi on the other hand, though more susceptible, was not focused on neither Tobias nor his words. His gaze remained trained on the elezen who had attacked him.
"...?!"
"...what?!"
Tobias' plan had finally came to fruition, though unknown to the bandits, as a fleeting chocobo passed before both men, startling and forcing them backwards out of its way. It didn't take long for both to realise that the black-haired midlander had stolen this freak opportunity to return a weapon to Clavier. Tarquin cursed to himself as he managed to make out the blade twirl through the air and land securely in Clavier's grip. At the very least, it wasn't his bow, but this had landed the assailants in a very hazardous situation. Not only were certain party members missing from view but the two direct opponents appeared more than capable, possibly enough to fend off their attention just enough to suffer an attack from the flank.
Tarquin readied his blade. However, he had barely succeeded to take a single step forward before he was ambushed by yet another surprise. Another loud, squawking chocobo charged Tarquin from behind, causing him to tumble forward into the water-logged mud. The blade slipped free from his grip, forcing it to fall just ilms out of reach. Those mere ilms were enough to determine his assured death, however. Tobias had already acted upon the moment and charged towards Tarquin in attempt to finally subdue him.
"Tarquin!" Amadi shouted as he stepped to assist his leader. However, Clavier had already responded to Tobias' sagacious plan and directed his attention towards the highlander. His sudden assault had caught Amadi off-guard, leaving him with very little time to respond. Raising his greataxe quickly, Amadi barely succeeded in parrying the young male's swift upwards slash with the shaft of his weapon though only momentarily. The attack had been far too fast for the highlander to form a proper grip and angle against the blade. As a result, the strike finally struck true causing Amadi's axe to swing free from his left hand as he barely retained grip with his right. Clavier's blade sliced cleanly through his flesh as a consequence and forced the large male a couple of yalms backwards. Though the wound was deep, it wasn't significantly incapacitating.
Amadi quickly grasped his axe with his left hand once more and swung the steel-tipped butt of the shaft in Clavier's direction as an attempt to deter the hyur from following up with a second attack so he could seize the chance to reacquire his balance. Should it succeed, Amadi would take the chance to apply pressure to his wound. His hand quickly became soaked in a dark crimson as the blood flowed swiftly through his torn cloak and across his large hand. Amadi grunts, exhaling sharply and repeatedly as he turns his aggression to his new, direct opponent. The pain was severe and he sought comfort in stealing as much time as necessary to tend to his wound. Clavier had hastened upon the moment well, obtaining the benefit of striking the next attack once more.
"Shit..." Tarquin swore to himself once more as he struggled to grasp for his sword as the presumably armed, Tobias quickly closed the distance. Amadi had been entirely preoccupied at this point, there was nothing he could do to intervene. Tarquin lowered his head and slowly shut his eyes as he prepared for the inevitable, chilling, embrace of death.
"Unbelievable.." he lamented to himself silently in complete disgust as a concluding testament to his final moments and the failures that had ensnared him.
-.....-
-.....-
*KLANG*
*shuffle*
"....?"
Time seemed to have stood still at that particular moment. Was he alive? Was he dead? Amadi could not have possibly delayed Tobias' strike. He had to be dead. Tarquin remained idle in his thoughts for what seemed like forever before he finally raised his head slowly to investigate the situation and the source of the peculiar noises.Â
His eyes widened in disbelief as he witnessed Senaca standing defiantly between him and a momentarily debilitated Tobias. Having being encapsulated in the quickly ensuing events that had led up to the chocobo attack, he had completely forgotten about his ace-in-the-hole. Senaca, the female highlander whom he had initially planned to either capture the second female or one of the archers, had taken upon her own initiative to emerge from the shadows and spare Tarquin the precious seconds he needed to scramble towards his sword and reclaim it securely within his grip.
Regardless of Tobias' skill, her speed and agility had surely proven enough to fend off his attack in the time it took for her to emerge from the shadows and stand between him and his target. Tarquin hesitated briefly as he struggled to grasp the situation before finally realising what had happened. While he quickly struggled towards his weapon, Senaca continued remaining vigilant and primed should her attack have proven ill-landed, as uncommon as that was for the warrior. A lock of coral-red hair hung loosely across her shadowed, hazelnut eyes as they met briefly with those of Tobias. Though both her daggers were posed ready before her, she had refused to use them against the unarmed midlander. Rather, the 'klang' noise had been created solely by herself clashing both blades together to serve as a momentary deterrent, one to enunciate her sudden presence before Tarquin that would result in Tobias instinctively slowing or attempting to halt his charge. She wasted no time in immediately countering him with a nimble yet powerful reverse roundhouse kick towards his chest in attempt to both wind and briefly disable him. Her swift thinking had saved Tarquin's life, buying him sufficient time to fully reclaim himself.
Tarquin clambered to his feet messily as he hastily grabbed a hold of the lifeline Senaca had offered him. His eyes quickly traveled to the back of her hood as he sought to collect his thoughts.
"The others... take care of them and protect our flank" Tarquin instructed in a hoarse and shaky voice as he threw his blade to the side as a means of directing his companion towards the direction of the caravan. He displayed no desire to show his due gratitude towards his silent guardian. Turning her head over her shoulder to offer a brief nod, Senaca quickly departed, sprinting off into the darkness to better make use of a stealthy ambush once more for when she would locate the targets that had disappeared from view.
Tarquin steadied himself, training his glare once more on Tobias and the chocobo that had rendezvoused alongside him.
"Cute.." he sneered as he studied both man and beast, though it was likely inaudible above the roaring storm.
Tobias had proven anything but foolish nor a man for bluffs. However, this time Tarquin was alert and ready. He would not succumb to any more tricks so easily. He formed a defensive stance this time, deciding to allow Tobias or his pet to make the next move this time, much like Amadi.
The blazing inferno cast an ideal, tangerine light across the area, illuminating almost everything within range of the caravan and clearly revealing the positions of the travelers who resided not too far from it. Tobias had once again attempted to play mind games with the men prior to conflict. It was perhaps an attempt to lull them into a fit of anger and behave more recklessly in combat, even if more aggressively, Tarquin thought. Or was he stalling? What could he possibly be stalling for though? No help would come. No-one would just happen upon this scenario in this weather, especially when they were practically half way from both Blackbrush AND Drybone.
Tobias' confidence was mildly unsettling. However, should he truly have sought to mentally destabilize the men then it would all have been in vain this time. Tarquin had abandoned his "passive" approach and was now prepared to engage in battle. No words would sway him at this point nor would they easily disrupt his focus. Amadi on the other hand, though more susceptible, was not focused on neither Tobias nor his words. His gaze remained trained on the elezen who had attacked him.
"...?!"
"...what?!"
Tobias' plan had finally came to fruition, though unknown to the bandits, as a fleeting chocobo passed before both men, startling and forcing them backwards out of its way. It didn't take long for both to realise that the black-haired midlander had stolen this freak opportunity to return a weapon to Clavier. Tarquin cursed to himself as he managed to make out the blade twirl through the air and land securely in Clavier's grip. At the very least, it wasn't his bow, but this had landed the assailants in a very hazardous situation. Not only were certain party members missing from view but the two direct opponents appeared more than capable, possibly enough to fend off their attention just enough to suffer an attack from the flank.
Tarquin readied his blade. However, he had barely succeeded to take a single step forward before he was ambushed by yet another surprise. Another loud, squawking chocobo charged Tarquin from behind, causing him to tumble forward into the water-logged mud. The blade slipped free from his grip, forcing it to fall just ilms out of reach. Those mere ilms were enough to determine his assured death, however. Tobias had already acted upon the moment and charged towards Tarquin in attempt to finally subdue him.
"Tarquin!" Amadi shouted as he stepped to assist his leader. However, Clavier had already responded to Tobias' sagacious plan and directed his attention towards the highlander. His sudden assault had caught Amadi off-guard, leaving him with very little time to respond. Raising his greataxe quickly, Amadi barely succeeded in parrying the young male's swift upwards slash with the shaft of his weapon though only momentarily. The attack had been far too fast for the highlander to form a proper grip and angle against the blade. As a result, the strike finally struck true causing Amadi's axe to swing free from his left hand as he barely retained grip with his right. Clavier's blade sliced cleanly through his flesh as a consequence and forced the large male a couple of yalms backwards. Though the wound was deep, it wasn't significantly incapacitating.
Amadi quickly grasped his axe with his left hand once more and swung the steel-tipped butt of the shaft in Clavier's direction as an attempt to deter the hyur from following up with a second attack so he could seize the chance to reacquire his balance. Should it succeed, Amadi would take the chance to apply pressure to his wound. His hand quickly became soaked in a dark crimson as the blood flowed swiftly through his torn cloak and across his large hand. Amadi grunts, exhaling sharply and repeatedly as he turns his aggression to his new, direct opponent. The pain was severe and he sought comfort in stealing as much time as necessary to tend to his wound. Clavier had hastened upon the moment well, obtaining the benefit of striking the next attack once more.
"Shit..." Tarquin swore to himself once more as he struggled to grasp for his sword as the presumably armed, Tobias quickly closed the distance. Amadi had been entirely preoccupied at this point, there was nothing he could do to intervene. Tarquin lowered his head and slowly shut his eyes as he prepared for the inevitable, chilling, embrace of death.
"Unbelievable.." he lamented to himself silently in complete disgust as a concluding testament to his final moments and the failures that had ensnared him.
-.....-
-.....-
*KLANG*
*shuffle*
*Fwathump*Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â ((Oh god... that onomatopeia...))
"....?"
Time seemed to have stood still at that particular moment. Was he alive? Was he dead? Amadi could not have possibly delayed Tobias' strike. He had to be dead. Tarquin remained idle in his thoughts for what seemed like forever before he finally raised his head slowly to investigate the situation and the source of the peculiar noises.Â
His eyes widened in disbelief as he witnessed Senaca standing defiantly between him and a momentarily debilitated Tobias. Having being encapsulated in the quickly ensuing events that had led up to the chocobo attack, he had completely forgotten about his ace-in-the-hole. Senaca, the female highlander whom he had initially planned to either capture the second female or one of the archers, had taken upon her own initiative to emerge from the shadows and spare Tarquin the precious seconds he needed to scramble towards his sword and reclaim it securely within his grip.
Regardless of Tobias' skill, her speed and agility had surely proven enough to fend off his attack in the time it took for her to emerge from the shadows and stand between him and his target. Tarquin hesitated briefly as he struggled to grasp the situation before finally realising what had happened. While he quickly struggled towards his weapon, Senaca continued remaining vigilant and primed should her attack have proven ill-landed, as uncommon as that was for the warrior. A lock of coral-red hair hung loosely across her shadowed, hazelnut eyes as they met briefly with those of Tobias. Though both her daggers were posed ready before her, she had refused to use them against the unarmed midlander. Rather, the 'klang' noise had been created solely by herself clashing both blades together to serve as a momentary deterrent, one to enunciate her sudden presence before Tarquin that would result in Tobias instinctively slowing or attempting to halt his charge. She wasted no time in immediately countering him with a nimble yet powerful reverse roundhouse kick towards his chest in attempt to both wind and briefly disable him. Her swift thinking had saved Tarquin's life, buying him sufficient time to fully reclaim himself.
Tarquin clambered to his feet messily as he hastily grabbed a hold of the lifeline Senaca had offered him. His eyes quickly traveled to the back of her hood as he sought to collect his thoughts.
"The others... take care of them and protect our flank" Tarquin instructed in a hoarse and shaky voice as he threw his blade to the side as a means of directing his companion towards the direction of the caravan. He displayed no desire to show his due gratitude towards his silent guardian. Turning her head over her shoulder to offer a brief nod, Senaca quickly departed, sprinting off into the darkness to better make use of a stealthy ambush once more for when she would locate the targets that had disappeared from view.
Tarquin steadied himself, training his glare once more on Tobias and the chocobo that had rendezvoused alongside him.
"Cute.." he sneered as he studied both man and beast, though it was likely inaudible above the roaring storm.
Tobias had proven anything but foolish nor a man for bluffs. However, this time Tarquin was alert and ready. He would not succumb to any more tricks so easily. He formed a defensive stance this time, deciding to allow Tobias or his pet to make the next move this time, much like Amadi.
![[Image: ecec20e41f.png]](https://puu.sh/xvMxb/ecec20e41f.png)
Characters: Andre Winter (Hy'ur) / K'nahli Yohko (Miqo'te)
