The knife thrown by Will goes wide of it's mark, the bandit smirking, not even attempting a dodge as he already knew he was outside of danger. He's incredibly confident for someone facing down three people, and soon enough, you find out why. Two cloaked bandits have snuck up behind Will and Ullr, the one after Ullr attempts to throttle him, thick arms closing around Ullr's neck, cutting off his breathing. The one after Will employs a different tactic, sweeping him underfoot with a large stave, knocking him to the floor face-up, pulling the stave back over his head for a crushing blow to Will's head...
Lilia stared down her opponent, it was back to a one on one situation now, just her and him. She held her sword down, having it hover about two feet from ground level as she paced from side-to-side, measuring up the bandit; it was a stance she could easily feint from, and she knew she would need all the agility and feinting she could muster in this combat. Her hair and cloak floated breezily in the draught emanating from the entrance of the complex as she moved, she paid neither any heed, her full attention and focus on the man before her. He was also pacing, and measuring her up as she was him, he had the strength and endurance advantage, that much was obvious, she, on the other hand, had the agility and speed advantage; at this point, it was impossible to tell which one would be successful.
Then everything changed, without warning, the bandit stepped forward towards her, building up pace as his intention to close the forty foot gap between them became woefully clear. He was bull-rushing her in short order, shield held in front of him, Morningstar aloft behind.
So he hopes to crush me in one blow. Lilia stood fast, holding her ground, legs bent and poised, ready to spring at any given moment. He charged to within a mere two metres of her before she moved, leaping to the side as if she were a deer, the Morningstar falling just abreast of her shoulder and thudding into the floor.
He's faster than I anticipated...she could not afford to lose that speed advantage, without it she was dead. Her movements were controlled, conserving energy, she wasn't as heavily armoured, she would not tire as quickly. She thrust her weapon into him as she leapt, taking advantage of the opening his embedding of the Morningstar had given her, she succeeded in nicking the strap of his greave, causing it to hang loose and fall from his shin, he shook it off and turned back to her. But by this time she had already moved off again, putting around ten metres distance between them.
Her breathing came faster as the adrenaline surged through her system; she consciously slowed it again, regulating her system, adrenaline would not help her, it ruined focus and caused you to overreach your limit and make horrendous life-threatening mistakes. She paced to and fro once again; keeping herself and her body under control.
It's kill or be killed, you know that. Calm. Breathe. She exhaled and inhaled slowly and deeply, observing the damages she'd caused, and mentally berating herself for her shoddy aim, not even having touched the man's flesh. In the time she had, she reached down to the rear of her right boot, picking the knife from it, this one was longer than the one she'd used outside the main cavern earlier, long enough that if you were to observe her boot carefully, you could see the hilt poking from the top of it, just barely, whereas the other was completely hidden. Lilia flicked the knife upright in her left hand, holding the sword in the other, dual-wielding the weapons in her hands. Right for offence, left for defence, although here, she wouldn't be able to block the Morningstar with either weapon.
Then I go all-out offensive.
She padded towards her opponent cautiously, the distance between them closing metre by metre until they stood three metres distant, not close enough for either to engage. Lilia took the extra step. He reacted immediately, bringing the Morningstar up in an arc towards her stomach, she sidestepped, the weapon catching the end of her cloak, which flowed harmlessly over the knobbled head of the weapon. Darting forwards, she brought Freyja around and into his arm, but the sword only glanced against his gauntlets, the sound of steel on steel echoing throughout the complex. She bounced backwards, not seeing him bring the Morningstar around on her as she did so, at the very last moment, she caught sight of it, hurriedly bringing the knife up in an automatic reflex, catching the chain and causing the head to swing wild, only glancing up against her shoulder, the blow was still hugely painful however, and Lilia reeled backwards, panting fast and hard. She spat to the side, ridding her mouth of excess fluid; what she spat was red and frothy, blood had risen up to her mouth from the blow. She winced at that, few people ever managed to injure her.
"What's the matter? Had enough?" He cackled at her as he spoke, sure of his advantage. Lilia grew angry, his voice only serving to piss her off; though she maintained control. She gritted her teeth as she responded, her voice low and threatening.
"You. You will kneel before me once I'm done with you. I shall have no mercy for you."
He laughed and charged her again, spinning the head of the Morningstar towards her, but in doing so opening his shield from his chest just enough to present Lilia with a viable opening. Seizing the opportunity, she held her knife high, jamming it against the chain of the heavier weapon, causing the head to fall lifeless to her side. Releasing her grip on it, she grasped her sword with both hands and ran it through his shield arm, stepping completely inside his defensive circle and running the weapon through his entire arm, causing it to appear out of his shoulder-blade before she spun on the spot, withdrawing the sword in one slick, bloodletting moment, the bandit's arteries spewing his life across the floor and Lilia; she ducked under his arm and kicked his shin as she got round behind him, causing him to buckle, but not drop just yet, he was a heavy bastard. Her face displayed an expression of disgust and hatred as she attacked him,
you will obey. You will kneel.
"I SAID KNEEL!" Lilia screamed at him as she brought the Bastard Sword down across the man's exposed hamstrings, forcing him to submit to her will; pulling the weapon, now coated from tip to guard in his blood, away with a flourish as he dropped to his knees before her; powerless to resist her slaughter. She stood above him then, vengeful and coated in blood, both her own and his; quivering slightly in the wild force of berserk rage she had allowed to surface. Without further words, she twisted the sword around in her grasp, holding it point-down, just touching the nape of the bandit's neck. She pushed towards the floor, hard, the long blade sinking into and through the man's chest, abdomen, and finally forcing the tip to split the skin just below the small of his back; he gurgled blood and spit as she performed her coup de grace on him. Raising her weapon back out of him, she kicked his corpse to the side; watching it drop to the floor with a satisfied, but almost insane, look on her face; turning about, she walked towards the other bandits, coated in blood as she was, her sword slick and oozing with the blood of their leader, she was the very image of the Devil herself before them.
