The Evrensel Conflict: Act 1 -- Chapter 1, Mission 1: Jaws of Oblivion

Erin

She felt a pit in her stomach deepen as countless eyes appeared, regret helpfully making itself known as she felt adrenaline surge through her, kickstarting the knight into action.

Nevermind. Screw putting up a fight, she was getting out of there.

Fearing for her life, or more so, another death, Erin rolled backwards to avoid being mauled by the strange creature, before reluctantly hurling her friend-skull at the attacker, spinning around, and bolting in the opposite direction, slightly thankful she wasn't wearing heavy equipment.

His sacrifice would not be in vain!

The woman scowled at the surrounding darkness as the soft patter of her feet on stone echoed through the halls. Towards the previous monster. At least there had only been one howl, she might be able to get past whatever it was? Her only option, really.

It must've been an amusing sight for whoever had put her here, a naked woman running from a horde of monsters towards the ominous growling of a hidden creature.

Hopefully she'd get some stroke of luck and find her equipment? She'd only been parted from her swords recently, yet she felt defenseless without them.

Where were summon signs when you needed them?
 
Tsunade- Character Sheet


On the last jab, the assassin tried grabbing her wrist with a free hand, then with her other, pulled out a small steel blade, twisted under Tsunade's arm, and tried slashing down from her wrist to her armpit, deep enough to at least draw blood.

Tsunade allows the assassin to grab her wrist. The instant the kunoichi feels those fingers close on her wrist, the assassin would feel the same steel grip close around her wrist. Actually. Harder. Inescapably hard.

"HRAAAAGH!" Tsunade uses her strength to whip the assassin against the ground, not enough to kill her of course, but sufficient to knock her out, or the very least render her unable to move from the breaking of bones in her arms and legs.
Like that, the assassin went down, with the stone ground cracking as she landed back first from Tsunade's throw. The chase, as short as it lasted, was over.

...... Except the assassin's grip on Tsunade's wrist was just as iron-locked as hers was. After a few moments, the assassin stood back up, twisting under Tsunade's arm to pull her elbow back, and again, with knife in hand, tried stabbing her between the shoulder blades.

"A Light Raiment, huh? You sure? I figured you for the Heavy Raiment type. you know, hide behind a skin of steel?" He mockingly gestured. "Hmph. Okay then, here." He handed it over to Artis. "Put that on, see if it fits okay. Preferably without the pajamas on." Artis wasn't gonna fight with his black raincoat on. "Here the rules: You fight for the blue team. You fight against the yellow team. In order to fight in the Arena you must wear an Arena Battle Raiment. The Battle Raiment covers your entire body. You can use your own helmet, shield, and weapon, so choose those items wisely. The Battle Raiment's already enchanted, so you can't muck with it. But aside from that, anything goes. Magic, stealth, whatever you need to win." Owyn explained as Artis put on his Raiment.

"You can compete in the Arena any day from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Just come to me, tell me you're ready for a match, and away you'll go. Got it? Good. If you actually manage to win a fight, don't get any ideas about looting your opponent's corpse! That's strictly forbidden!" He quickly added before finishing up the rules.
- Artis Solum, Twilight Warrior - Bloodworks Arena -

Artis merely raised an eyebrow in response to Owyn's mockery, then took the Light Raiment he was given and looked over it, noting that it was cleaner than he expected, then looked back to Owyn as he explained the rules. The fights would be between two teams; Blue and Yellow, with Artis being part of the former. Once Owyn mentioned the need for a helmet, shield and weapon, Artis would openly asked: "Bring my own of those items, right?" Just for clarification, only noting to himself that he had none of those items, save for his Keyblade which would likely draw some unwelcome looks, so perhaps procuring a sword would be wise. For that however, as well as the shield and helmet, Artis would need money and he had none, save for the currency of his own world which definitely wouldn't fly here.

Finding an area secluded enough for Artis to don his raiment, he would do so after removing his Black Coat, hanging it up somewhere safe, all while keeping his ear out for everything else Owyn was telling the boy, particularly regarding the enchantment of his Raiment, of which Artis could feel the aura of as he slipped it on, and the use of magic and stealth being allowed.

Straightening his Raiment, Artis would stand before Owyn again as he finished up, feeling rather comfortable in this new outfit. He then briefly laughed as Owyn made special mention that looting was forbidden. "Didn't even cross my mind." He added with a clearing of his throat. "So, what time is it now?" Artis asked, then after being answered, mockingly or not, he would speak in earnest: "I'll need to peruse town for a bit before I do any battles first. Then I'll be back here and in the arena before you know it." Artis explained, but before departure, he would sheepishly inquire: "I'm assuming I have to leave the Raiment here if I go anywhere other than the Arena?" The boy felt it would be better to be safe than sorry, embarrassment be damned.

@Wade Von Doom
"Raiment's yours, kid. You'd look more in place around the city in that than your pajamas." Owyn remarked, before adding, "The time's still for battling for new couple hours, so if you're plans for right now are setting up your will and saying goodbye to your family before your fight, be quick about it. I got other fighters who'd love to not wait in line for a rookie like yourself." Owyn wasn't gonna give special treatment for Artis just because he wasn't from around her and had to go find the others.

If he wanted to fight, he'd have to wait his turn in line with other fighters.

"Let me give you some advice, strangers," she began to say, his voice raised higher than theirs to cut into their discussion. "Leave. Now. You ain't welcome here. You're better off listening to your friend." She had such menace and aggression in her voice, like she was echoing the rest of the town through her voice.
Corvo Attano

Corvo narrowed his eyes in response, a hand moving to his blade. His fingers almost tickled the pommel, brushing against the hilt, but he didn't draw it from where it was, stuffed in his coat.

"I don't particularly care for your tone," he said, almost calling her insolent. "Surely, your small town has nothing to hide from a bunch of passerbies on their way to County Kvatch?"
"The only thing we have to hide is from you outsiders!" She raised her tone again, unflinching in Corvo's menace. "It's Outsiders like you that came and burned down our town, years ago. Ruined us. But we'll get ours back, one day soon. Now off with you, all of ya!" The woman yelled, before leaving them to return to her business.

"Friendly." Shakira remarked sarcastically.

"Do you know anything about this?" Jin asked, to which Shakira seemed flabbergasted Jin even thought to say that.

"I didn't even know this place existed until now!" He answered. With the three standing in the middle of town, there were at least three buildings of interest not burned to the ground. To their left was the inn, with the sign hanging from the doorway labeled 'Moslin's Inn.' To their right was the general store, also called, 'Moslin's Dry Goods.' And far down the center of town, at the end of the large dirt road, was a massive church.

Erin
Deep underground


The bare knight hissed quietly to themselves in the darkness. She didn't remember how she got here, and while the curse chipped away at her mind all the time, she was fairly certain she would've remembered something as big as getting caught and dropped in some dingy cell.

Shifting from her spot in the corner onto her feet, Erin gave the room a small look over with what little light there was. Grey walls, a bed, some apples, some bones, a skull, which she gave a annoyed glare at for it's mocking smile, and of course, the iron bars keeping her captive. It was very unusual, she'd never been in this situation in her journeys, always the one saving someone else, but never the one trapped without a way out.

The sound from outside the cage wasn't anything unusual, she'd fought all manner of beasts, but she couldn't keep the small flicker of fear rising in her chest at the idea of fighting it without any equipment. She could die a hundred times more, but it never made the pain any easier to take.

Reaching through the bars, she pulled the bowl into the cage. As an undead, she had no need for food, but she pushed into them with her hand anyway on the off-chance they held some magical way out. After all, if chests could stand up and tear her limb from limb, it wasn't too far out of the question that an apple could open a door.

While poking and prodding the apples for something metal, she also shoved at the bars to check if they'd fall over or not. Unlikely, but again, what did she have to lose?

"Someone's going to pay for this once I get out." she swore to the air, imagining some smug face being cut into by her blade, which she hoped wasn't far away. As strange as it was, she was fine wandering around without anything on, but her swords reminded her that she wasn't just some hollow quite yet. She was a knight, or at least had been, and both those and her shield were the few things that reminded her of it.
Erin would only end up hurting the palm of her hands when shoving at the bars. They were firmly connected to the walls of her cage. If she looked further around her cage though, she would find something interesting in the skull's mouth. A lockpick. And her cage door had a standard lock on it.

ARENA:

Owyn didn't seem phased by Artis' retort, like he didn't believe a word the keyblade wielder said. Still, he sighed once Artis finished speaking. "Well... at least you're trying to sound tough." He told him. "All right. It's your funeral. Welcome to the arena, you filthy Pit Dog. You're free to fight, so long as you know the rules of competition. Now," he moved around Artis to the armor cabinets, where some of the spare raiment's were located. At least the clean ones. "Now, let me give you your Battle Raiment. It's the uniform of all Arena combatants. Do you want a light raiment or a heavy raiment?" He opened up the cabinet to show them off. The heavy was a light grey and faded blue ornament, while the light was the same but with black iron.
- Artis Solum, Twilight Warrior - Arena -

Owyn's stonefaced expression made it clear that Artis's threat hadn't phased the man and for a moment, Artis worried that he had just embarrassed himself something fierce. Did he not give it enough oomph? Did he say a word wrong? Perhaps his voice cracked, that would just be insulting. He didn't need to worry himself for long though, as Owyn sighed and begrudgingly welcomed the Keyblade Wielder into the Bloodworks Arena, all the while granting Artis the epithet of "Pit Dog".

After moving towards some large cabinets, Owyn presented Artis with various Battle Raiments for him to don for the contest of blood, quizzing him on which level of protection he'd prefer.

"A light raiment. I prefer to be quick on my feet in a battle." Not wanting to give Owyn cause to be angry, Artis kept his reservations about needing a raiment to himself, preferring his Black Coat, but would play along for the sake of participation and hopefully, some enjoyment.

@Wade Von Doom
"A Light Raiment, huh? You sure? I figured you for the Heavy Raiment type. you know, hide behind a skin of steel?" He mockingly gestured. "Hmph. Okay then, here." He handed it over to Artis. "Put that on, see if it fits okay. Preferably without the pajamas on." Artis wasn't gonna fight with his black raincoat on. "Here the rules: You fight for the blue team. You fight against the yellow team. In order to fight in the Arena you must wear an Arena Battle Raiment. The Battle Raiment covers your entire body. You can use your own helmet, shield, and weapon, so choose those items wisely. The Battle Raiment's already enchanted, so you can't muck with it. But aside from that, anything goes. Magic, stealth, whatever you need to win." Owyn explained as Artis put on his Raiment.

"You can compete in the Arena any day from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Just come to me, tell me you're ready for a match, and away you'll go. Got it? Good. If you actually manage to win a fight, don't get any ideas about looting your opponent's corpse! That's strictly forbidden!" He quickly added before finishing up the rules.
"Ahhh, our mysterious friends have arrived." The redguard said aloud as Hei approached with Layyel. "I was wondering if you would show up. The beggars in the city were curious about you. They were quick to warn us about if you showed up, in case you were Imperial spies, since you were seen with The Crusader himself." Meaning Callintus. "But, I can tell just from your appearance, that doesn't seem the case. An Imperial spy wouldn't dare wear such a getup. Nor would he bring along his pet troll." He eyed Layyel, another give away Hei wasn't being the most sneaky of guys right now with that hulking figure following him.

"Besides, Callintus may be in favor by the empire, but he's worked with the Guild to garner our trust. And from what I'm to understand, you're here to seek our hidden leader." There was much to be said about Hei before he even said a word, yet the Redguard was quick to trust him immediately. Something which Hei should be grateful for, as no one else could be given such faith in a first meeting.

Hei
Gathered at the Waterfront, talkin' to some Thieves


"Indeed, many thanks." He replied to the Redguard's words. Thinking back to the Beggars he had questioned, and mildly chastising himself but given the circumstances, it was going to be a thing he deals with, for better or for worse.

But he moved on to speak on the matter. "Yes, the Emperor's been murdered. And I highly doubt anyone could make a move in this city without your leader knowing, I am sure he's the go-to for finding out things. Willing to trade services for information."

@Wade Von Doom @BazusoTheGrey
"As noble as that is from you, I'm afraid our dealing's with outsiders in our Guild is very strict. Even for members of the Knights, not all share Callintus' 'appreciation' for our services. If you wish to trade your services for what we have, we need to know you can be trusted. And since we're all here..." He looked to the Argonian and Dark Elf. If Hei and Layyel wished to know more, then it seemed they needed to pass the test for Guild membership.

Squatting somewhat away from the talking tinies, Layyel tried his best to pay attention to them since they were talking about something serious sounding. Of course, most of the serious-sounding things were things that Layyel didn't really understand since the tinies were talking all sneaky-like. So, he continued to squat and watched as the dark tiny said some things to Serious Tiny (who was named Hay, or something? Odd name.) then started looking at the other weird tinies.

After that, things went quiet for some reason. Looking between all of them, it was clear that someone was supposed to say something to continue on whatever it was dark tiny said but for some reason, no one was talking. After a few pensive moments, Layyel reached out to Hay and poked him in the back. With a raspy growl, Layyel tried his best to whisper out, "Hey... whaat... doooo? Weeee... dooooo... sneaky?"

@Wade Von Doom @The Wanderer

Hei/BK-201
Bout to do some initiation.

Hei listened as the man spoke, understanding the concern and the requirements for information on the matter. Judging from the other faces gathered, these were the other recruits for this Guild.

His thoughts were dashed when Layyel poked Hei in the back, the giant pushing the Contractor forward somewhat. Turning back to the giant, Hei had to mentally repress the urge to sigh as he explained to Layyel. "Yes, we do 'sneaky.'" He spoke slow for the giant to understand. Turning back to the 'recruiter' before speaking.

"So what's the test and rules?" Since assassin wasn't in their name, Hei got a good feeling that killing was going to end up having a less than ideal result.

@BazusoTheGrey @Wade Von Doom
"Very good." The Redguard smiled as Hei and his giant friend agreed. "Armand Christophe," he finally introduced himself, "and these here are your current rivals. Methredhel," the Dark Elf, "and Amusei," the Argonian. "Everyone is here. Let's begin. Each of you is seeking membership in the Thieves Guild, with some in need of it more than others," meaning Hei and Layyel.

"The Thieves Guild is not a myth. We are followers of the Grey Fox, and I am his Doyen. Merely by finding me, you have passed the first test. It's unusual for us to have three potential recruits at the same time. Rather than the normal test of skill, I'm going to make this a contest." Layyel seemed to be more of a pet to Hei, so didn't count as a recruit.

"That's not fair!" Amusei cried out.

"Methredhel, you know the rules. However, for the sake Amusei and the newcomers, let me state them clearly. Whoever brings me the diary of Amantius Allectus, without killing him, will be invited into the guild." Armand explained.

"Hah! I'll have it before sunrise!" Methredhel declared.

"It's somewhere in the Imperial City. The beggars will help you locate it, for a price. I can sell you lockpicks if you need them. Five gold per lockpick. And one more thing. You cannot kill each other during this trial. We may be thieves, but we're not murderers." Armand clarified, before Methredhel was already off running. Nearby were some beggars asleep in sleeping bags by the walls of the waterfront, and Amusei looked absolutely befuddled as to where to even start looking, since he was wearing just rags, and looked penniless.

"Maybe he lives in the Elven Gardens district?" He muttered to himself, before heading off in the same direction Methredhel did.

"May fortune favor you, my new friends." Armand said, before winking to Hei and Layyel.

The inn keeper himself, behind the front desk, was cleaning a few mugs with a damp rag, and just like the others in town, eyed the three with utter chagrin. "Make it quick." He said to them before they could even ask their question.
Corvo Attano

"We'll stay the night here," Corvo said, in a voice that brokered little disagreement, indeed making it quick. He put down a coinpurse on the counter to pay for their stay, as he looked around the inn, frowning at its interior. It was a rather dingy location; poorly-lit, covered in ancient spiderwebs, and there was a vague, eerie sense of being watched that seemed to be one of the place's defining traits. "Not the most cheerful of places to pass through, this town of yours."
"Outsiders have never been kind to us." The inn keeper simply said, before taking the whole coin purse to count. "Hmmm, 28, 29, 30..." He then looked up to the three, before telling them, "I suppose this'll be enough for you all. It's 30 gold per night, and you'll have to share the room together."

"How generous." Shakira remarked sarcastically.

"Take the stairs up to the right, the room on the left. No visitors allowed. And no pets." He took the gold, and passed back Corvo's bag, which was nearly empty.

"Thank you." Jin said, bowing slightly to the inn keeper.

"Just keep to yourselves here." The inn keeper seemed unimpressed, returning to his bar duties of cleaning the mugs. When the three entered their room, there would be two bedrooms separated by a small hallway. The bedroom on the left was clean, tidy, and illuminated by lit candles. There was a desk for writing, a table with a single chair, a book shelf with but four old books covered in dust, and drapes along the walls that were faded and stained brown.

The room on the right, however, was a complete mess. The window illuminated the room with outside light, but the furniture was knocked over, the bed sheets thrown off the bed, and plates and bowls smashed along the floor like it had been ransacked. Jin, already feeling uneased about the room, grabbed the chair from the left bedroom and placed it under the doorknob to their room, blocking it in case anyone tried to enter.

Shakira, meanwhile, looked around the ransacked room. "No blood at least." He mentioned to the others as he looked over the bed and floor. "I'll take this room." If only because if someone did enter, and the others were overtaken, he could just jump out the window to make a run for it.

-----------------------------------------

MEANWHILE:

Erin's strategy of 'just get it over with,' may not have been the best course of action for her, as out of the dark, a dozen eyes glowing in her direction from a single figure, jumped her way; it's massive, dangling arms trying to smash down upon her from over head. More glowing red eyes soon began to look her way.

IPbr119.jpeg

Hei/BK-201

The Contractor listened to the Redguard as he explained the rules. No killing the holder of the book, nor killing any of the other recruits. Hei had some gold on him, which he used to buy himself some lockpicks,

The rest was going to be used for bribing for information out of the beggars. But first he had to explain to Layyel. "No killing alright, but if you see anyone running off with the book that isn't us. You grab them and hold them gentle but firm enough they can't escape." He said real careful and often repeating it until hopefully Layyel got it. But right now he was on the timer, so he approached the beggars, nudging them wake to hold a handful of gold to them.

"Amantius Allectus, know where his home is?" He asked.

@Wade Von Doom @BazusoTheGrey
 
"Raiment's yours, kid. You'd look more in place around the city in that than your pajamas." Owyn remarked, before adding, "The time's still for battling for new couple hours, so if you're plans for right now are setting up your will and saying goodbye to your family before your fight, be quick about it. I got other fighters who'd love to not wait in line for a rookie like yourself." Owyn wasn't gonna give special treatment for Artis just because he wasn't from around her and had to go find the others.

If he wanted to fight, he'd have to wait his turn in line with other fighters.
- Artis Solum, Twilight Warrior - Bloodworks Arena -

Artis simply nodded, paying no further heed toward any mockery from Owyn. "I understand, I've only just joined up after all." He said in reply to Owyn making it known that the fighting would not wait long for Artis and there were others who were itching to fight just as much as he, if not more so. Though now Artis was wondering: As he needed to procure a Sword and Helmet at the very least, where would he get the correct funds?

"I could ask Callintus...argh, but I don't remember where he is. And even then, I'd feel bad asking him for a loan. But I really want to see this Arena in action for myself. Guess I'll just have to try and find him."

"I'll be as quick as I can then!" Artis then gave a quick bow and spun on his heel, heading back up the stairs and through the door, pausing just outside of it for a moment to wrack his brain again about where Callintus and company were...

@Wade Von Doom
 
Shakira, meanwhile, looked around the ransacked room. "No blood at least." He mentioned to the others as he looked over the bed and floor. "I'll take this room." If only because if someone did enter, and the others were overtaken, he could just jump out the window to make a run for it.
Corvo Attano

"Very well. In that case, I'll take this one. If something happens in the middle of the night, shout. I don't think the locals are friendly - and while I don't mean to accuse innocent men of wickedness, we don't know what might happen."

As it seemed like Jin was going to take the first watch, Corvo instead started to search the room for traps and items of note. He was a paranoid man, after months spent as a brute assassin and lackey working for the Loyalists. He'd been on the run, and had to avoid plague and watchmen alike, so he honed a good habit of checking every place he planned on spending more than fifteen minutes in for anything of note that could either be useful or a hindrance if he were ambushed. Using his Dark Vision in order to see past the feeble material structures around him, he didn't find any traps, but did find something else - inside one of the cupboards in the ransacked room, there seemed to be a book.

"Hm." He left, going into Shakira's claimed room. He walked past the Argonian and knelt next to the cupboard, reaching within and rummaging around with his hand, only to pull out a small... diary, from the looks of it.

"I found something," he commented to the others. "Come take a look at this."
Inside the book, Corvo would find a name on the first page. 'Dar-Ma.' Most of the book deals with personal but mundane details of her life in Chorrol. The only interesting entry is the last one:

"Arrived in Hackdirt after dark, due to Blossom throwing a shoe on the way -- the road was REALLY rough! hardly more than a track -- doesn't anyone else ever come down here?!

The trader's shop was closed, and she wouldn't come to the door even though I could see a light in the upstairs window -- RUDE!!! But at least this inn was open (although the proprietor is kind of creepy -- kept giving me these weird grins when he thought I wasn't looking -- ugh.) And what's wrong with his face??

Seems like I'm the only one staying here tonight. I didn't see much of the town since it was already dark, but I admit to being kind of spooked -- but I'll never admit that to Mother! Or she'd never let me go on another one of these deliveries. She still thinks I'm just a baby (she would probably say "hatchling," and in front of my friends too!) Remember to ask her about the creepy innkeeper when I get home.

Well, the candle is almost burned down (they don't even provide a lantern in this horrible old inn!), so I guess I'd better try to get some sleep. If I CAN even sleep with all the creaking in this old place! I keep thinking I hear footsteps outside the door, I'm so on edge -- GROW UP, Dar! I'm sure in the morning it will all seem quaint and charming. Good night, Diary!"


Shakira and Jin came over to also read the same entry, with Jin chiming in with, "I doubt this woman left this here by mistake."

"What made you guess?" Shakira remarked sarcastically, looking over the room once again in its current state. "Maybe we should all stay up."
Erin

She felt a pit in her stomach deepen as countless eyes appeared, regret helpfully making itself known as she felt adrenaline surge through her, kickstarting the knight into action.

Nevermind. Screw putting up a fight, she was getting out of there.

Fearing for her life, or more so, another death, Erin rolled backwards to avoid being mauled by the strange creature, before reluctantly hurling her friend-skull at the attacker, spinning around, and bolting in the opposite direction, slightly thankful she wasn't wearing heavy equipment.

His sacrifice would not be in vain!

The woman scowled at the surrounding darkness as the soft patter of her feet on stone echoed through the halls. Towards the previous monster. At least there had only been one howl, she might be able to get past whatever it was? Her only option, really.

It must've been an amusing sight for whoever had put her here, a naked woman running from a horde of monsters towards the ominous growling of a hidden creature.

Hopefully she'd get some stroke of luck and find her equipment? She'd only been parted from her swords recently, yet she felt defenseless without them.

Where were summon signs when you needed them?
Her skull friend, in all its might from her thunderous throw, tried to destroy the bloathead with one single blow to the head, to smash its red eyes into a thousand pieces, scattered its face like a jigsaw puzzle, and send its body flying back into the dark void from which is came.

But, it made this noise upon impact.


The bloathead lightly flinched when the skull hit, then all the bloatheads watched it fall to the ground, slowly roll across the ground, and stop for a few seconds, before its jaw bone fell off. Then they started chasing her. The whispers and sounds of crackling bones and discombobulated joints followed her closely. The darkness was never ending, no semblance of light or direction, just her charging through the void with those sounds now echoing all around her. Then, she would hit something; hitting what would feel like a tall and bulky man's chest. She would just make out their appearance in the darkness. They looked just as friendly as the monsters chasing her.

tumblr_nqxbbgZxMz1rp0vkjo1_500.gif
 
Erin

Running straight into yet another terrifying entity, she wasn't exactly sure if they were friendly or not, but if the creatures chasing her were anything to go by, she assumed not.

Doing as one does when faced with an opponent larger than she was, she pulled her leg back, and slammed it as hard as she could into her opponent's weakpoint, in this case, the man's groin, before attempting to slip past him and continue her escape down the corridor.

She doubted they'd last very long, and while she wished she'd been able to take that strange scimitar off of him, she didn't want to test her grip strength against his while being chased by a horde of monsters.

At the best, he handled the monsters and she escaped, at the worst, they somehow joined forces and she got to run away with a little bit of distance advantage, but either way, she liked the situation she'd made for herself, despite everything.

Erin was getting a little tired of running aimlessly through dark corridors, it wasn't the first time she'd gotten lost, but she'd never gotten lost while being chased by such a persistent crowd. The fatigue was starting to get to her. As fit as she was, her body was slick with sweat, yet onwards she continued, with revenge on her mind.
 
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Tsunade- Character Sheet


Like that, the assassin went down, with the stone ground cracking as she landed back first from Tsunade's throw. The chase, as short as it lasted, was over.

...... Except the assassin's grip on Tsunade's wrist was just as iron-locked as hers was. After a few moments, the assassin stood back up, twisting under Tsunade's arm to pull her elbow back, and again, with knife in hand, tried stabbing her between the shoulder blades.

Just when she has thought the assassin out cold, Tsunade finds her arm twisted behind her back and she knows a blade is about to be stabbed into her back. She has underestimated this assassin and feels she deserves the pain that shoots into her back.

But the assassin has also underestimated Tsunade even after experiencing her strength.The pain of being stabbed in the back is no deterrent for her when Tsunade starts her counter-attack by squeezing the wrist she holds with force enough to break bone;her left heel stomps back and down onto the assassins’ left foot to break that foot; she lets go of the assassin to spin around and hit her in the kidney; lower back; shoulder;and temple. Each blow is just under the force to break bone and collectively should subject the assassin to enough pain and trauma to incapacitate her.

If that does not suffice, Tsunade tackles the assassin to the ground from behind with her left knee held fast to the base of the spine and hands holding both arms to the ground.
 
Shakira and Jin came over to also read the same entry, with Jin chiming in with, "I doubt this woman left this here by mistake."

"What made you guess?" Shakira remarked sarcastically, looking over the room once again in its current state. "Maybe we should all stay up."
"Indeed," murmured Corvo, allowing the diary to close with a quiet clap in his hands. "Otherwise, we may find ourselves sharing her fate, whatever it was. I believe this constitutes partial evidence the locals, or at least certain groups among them, maybe hostile."

After a moment to think, Corvo started looking around the room and pictured how a fight would look inside, should it break out. Their main defensive point would be the entryway, given its relatively narrow space and tightness. It was a perfect chokepoint and kill field, leveling the playing field sufficiently that even the three of them would be able to, with the correct preparation, take on tenfold the amount in men. And for Corvo, this was doubly true, due to his magic.

"It'd be wise to, at the very least, barricade the possible points of ingress. If either of you knows how we could even trap them," he proposed.
 
Tsunade- Character Sheet


On the last jab, the assassin tried grabbing her wrist with a free hand, then with her other, pulled out a small steel blade, twisted under Tsunade's arm, and tried slashing down from her wrist to her armpit, deep enough to at least draw blood.

Tsunade allows the assassin to grab her wrist. The instant the kunoichi feels those fingers close on her wrist, the assassin would feel the same steel grip close around her wrist. Actually. Harder. Inescapably hard.

"HRAAAAGH!" Tsunade uses her strength to whip the assassin against the ground, not enough to kill her of course, but sufficient to knock her out, or the very least render her unable to move from the breaking of bones in her arms and legs.
Like that, the assassin went down, with the stone ground cracking as she landed back first from Tsunade's throw. The chase, as short as it lasted, was over.

...... Except the assassin's grip on Tsunade's wrist was just as iron-locked as hers was. After a few moments, the assassin stood back up, twisting under Tsunade's arm to pull her elbow back, and again, with knife in hand, tried stabbing her between the shoulder blades.

"A Light Raiment, huh? You sure? I figured you for the Heavy Raiment type. you know, hide behind a skin of steel?" He mockingly gestured. "Hmph. Okay then, here." He handed it over to Artis. "Put that on, see if it fits okay. Preferably without the pajamas on." Artis wasn't gonna fight with his black raincoat on. "Here the rules: You fight for the blue team. You fight against the yellow team. In order to fight in the Arena you must wear an Arena Battle Raiment. The Battle Raiment covers your entire body. You can use your own helmet, shield, and weapon, so choose those items wisely. The Battle Raiment's already enchanted, so you can't muck with it. But aside from that, anything goes. Magic, stealth, whatever you need to win." Owyn explained as Artis put on his Raiment.

"You can compete in the Arena any day from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Just come to me, tell me you're ready for a match, and away you'll go. Got it? Good. If you actually manage to win a fight, don't get any ideas about looting your opponent's corpse! That's strictly forbidden!" He quickly added before finishing up the rules.
- Artis Solum, Twilight Warrior - Bloodworks Arena -

Artis merely raised an eyebrow in response to Owyn's mockery, then took the Light Raiment he was given and looked over it, noting that it was cleaner than he expected, then looked back to Owyn as he explained the rules. The fights would be between two teams; Blue and Yellow, with Artis being part of the former. Once Owyn mentioned the need for a helmet, shield and weapon, Artis would openly asked: "Bring my own of those items, right?" Just for clarification, only noting to himself that he had none of those items, save for his Keyblade which would likely draw some unwelcome looks, so perhaps procuring a sword would be wise. For that however, as well as the shield and helmet, Artis would need money and he had none, save for the currency of his own world which definitely wouldn't fly here.

Finding an area secluded enough for Artis to don his raiment, he would do so after removing his Black Coat, hanging it up somewhere safe, all while keeping his ear out for everything else Owyn was telling the boy, particularly regarding the enchantment of his Raiment, of which Artis could feel the aura of as he slipped it on, and the use of magic and stealth being allowed.

Straightening his Raiment, Artis would stand before Owyn again as he finished up, feeling rather comfortable in this new outfit. He then briefly laughed as Owyn made special mention that looting was forbidden. "Didn't even cross my mind." He added with a clearing of his throat. "So, what time is it now?" Artis asked, then after being answered, mockingly or not, he would speak in earnest: "I'll need to peruse town for a bit before I do any battles first. Then I'll be back here and in the arena before you know it." Artis explained, but before departure, he would sheepishly inquire: "I'm assuming I have to leave the Raiment here if I go anywhere other than the Arena?" The boy felt it would be better to be safe than sorry, embarrassment be damned.

@Wade Von Doom
"Raiment's yours, kid. You'd look more in place around the city in that than your pajamas." Owyn remarked, before adding, "The time's still for battling for new couple hours, so if you're plans for right now are setting up your will and saying goodbye to your family before your fight, be quick about it. I got other fighters who'd love to not wait in line for a rookie like yourself." Owyn wasn't gonna give special treatment for Artis just because he wasn't from around her and had to go find the others.

If he wanted to fight, he'd have to wait his turn in line with other fighters.

"Let me give you some advice, strangers," she began to say, his voice raised higher than theirs to cut into their discussion. "Leave. Now. You ain't welcome here. You're better off listening to your friend." She had such menace and aggression in her voice, like she was echoing the rest of the town through her voice.
Corvo Attano

Corvo narrowed his eyes in response, a hand moving to his blade. His fingers almost tickled the pommel, brushing against the hilt, but he didn't draw it from where it was, stuffed in his coat.

"I don't particularly care for your tone," he said, almost calling her insolent. "Surely, your small town has nothing to hide from a bunch of passerbies on their way to County Kvatch?"
"The only thing we have to hide is from you outsiders!" She raised her tone again, unflinching in Corvo's menace. "It's Outsiders like you that came and burned down our town, years ago. Ruined us. But we'll get ours back, one day soon. Now off with you, all of ya!" The woman yelled, before leaving them to return to her business.

"Friendly." Shakira remarked sarcastically.

"Do you know anything about this?" Jin asked, to which Shakira seemed flabbergasted Jin even thought to say that.

"I didn't even know this place existed until now!" He answered. With the three standing in the middle of town, there were at least three buildings of interest not burned to the ground. To their left was the inn, with the sign hanging from the doorway labeled 'Moslin's Inn.' To their right was the general store, also called, 'Moslin's Dry Goods.' And far down the center of town, at the end of the large dirt road, was a massive church.

Erin
Deep underground


The bare knight hissed quietly to themselves in the darkness. She didn't remember how she got here, and while the curse chipped away at her mind all the time, she was fairly certain she would've remembered something as big as getting caught and dropped in some dingy cell.

Shifting from her spot in the corner onto her feet, Erin gave the room a small look over with what little light there was. Grey walls, a bed, some apples, some bones, a skull, which she gave a annoyed glare at for it's mocking smile, and of course, the iron bars keeping her captive. It was very unusual, she'd never been in this situation in her journeys, always the one saving someone else, but never the one trapped without a way out.

The sound from outside the cage wasn't anything unusual, she'd fought all manner of beasts, but she couldn't keep the small flicker of fear rising in her chest at the idea of fighting it without any equipment. She could die a hundred times more, but it never made the pain any easier to take.

Reaching through the bars, she pulled the bowl into the cage. As an undead, she had no need for food, but she pushed into them with her hand anyway on the off-chance they held some magical way out. After all, if chests could stand up and tear her limb from limb, it wasn't too far out of the question that an apple could open a door.

While poking and prodding the apples for something metal, she also shoved at the bars to check if they'd fall over or not. Unlikely, but again, what did she have to lose?

"Someone's going to pay for this once I get out." she swore to the air, imagining some smug face being cut into by her blade, which she hoped wasn't far away. As strange as it was, she was fine wandering around without anything on, but her swords reminded her that she wasn't just some hollow quite yet. She was a knight, or at least had been, and both those and her shield were the few things that reminded her of it.
Erin would only end up hurting the palm of her hands when shoving at the bars. They were firmly connected to the walls of her cage. If she looked further around her cage though, she would find something interesting in the skull's mouth. A lockpick. And her cage door had a standard lock on it.

ARENA:

Owyn didn't seem phased by Artis' retort, like he didn't believe a word the keyblade wielder said. Still, he sighed once Artis finished speaking. "Well... at least you're trying to sound tough." He told him. "All right. It's your funeral. Welcome to the arena, you filthy Pit Dog. You're free to fight, so long as you know the rules of competition. Now," he moved around Artis to the armor cabinets, where some of the spare raiment's were located. At least the clean ones. "Now, let me give you your Battle Raiment. It's the uniform of all Arena combatants. Do you want a light raiment or a heavy raiment?" He opened up the cabinet to show them off. The heavy was a light grey and faded blue ornament, while the light was the same but with black iron.
- Artis Solum, Twilight Warrior - Arena -

Owyn's stonefaced expression made it clear that Artis's threat hadn't phased the man and for a moment, Artis worried that he had just embarrassed himself something fierce. Did he not give it enough oomph? Did he say a word wrong? Perhaps his voice cracked, that would just be insulting. He didn't need to worry himself for long though, as Owyn sighed and begrudgingly welcomed the Keyblade Wielder into the Bloodworks Arena, all the while granting Artis the epithet of "Pit Dog".

After moving towards some large cabinets, Owyn presented Artis with various Battle Raiments for him to don for the contest of blood, quizzing him on which level of protection he'd prefer.

"A light raiment. I prefer to be quick on my feet in a battle." Not wanting to give Owyn cause to be angry, Artis kept his reservations about needing a raiment to himself, preferring his Black Coat, but would play along for the sake of participation and hopefully, some enjoyment.

@Wade Von Doom
"A Light Raiment, huh? You sure? I figured you for the Heavy Raiment type. you know, hide behind a skin of steel?" He mockingly gestured. "Hmph. Okay then, here." He handed it over to Artis. "Put that on, see if it fits okay. Preferably without the pajamas on." Artis wasn't gonna fight with his black raincoat on. "Here the rules: You fight for the blue team. You fight against the yellow team. In order to fight in the Arena you must wear an Arena Battle Raiment. The Battle Raiment covers your entire body. You can use your own helmet, shield, and weapon, so choose those items wisely. The Battle Raiment's already enchanted, so you can't muck with it. But aside from that, anything goes. Magic, stealth, whatever you need to win." Owyn explained as Artis put on his Raiment.

"You can compete in the Arena any day from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Just come to me, tell me you're ready for a match, and away you'll go. Got it? Good. If you actually manage to win a fight, don't get any ideas about looting your opponent's corpse! That's strictly forbidden!" He quickly added before finishing up the rules.
"Ahhh, our mysterious friends have arrived." The redguard said aloud as Hei approached with Layyel. "I was wondering if you would show up. The beggars in the city were curious about you. They were quick to warn us about if you showed up, in case you were Imperial spies, since you were seen with The Crusader himself." Meaning Callintus. "But, I can tell just from your appearance, that doesn't seem the case. An Imperial spy wouldn't dare wear such a getup. Nor would he bring along his pet troll." He eyed Layyel, another give away Hei wasn't being the most sneaky of guys right now with that hulking figure following him.

"Besides, Callintus may be in favor by the empire, but he's worked with the Guild to garner our trust. And from what I'm to understand, you're here to seek our hidden leader." There was much to be said about Hei before he even said a word, yet the Redguard was quick to trust him immediately. Something which Hei should be grateful for, as no one else could be given such faith in a first meeting.

Hei
Gathered at the Waterfront, talkin' to some Thieves


"Indeed, many thanks." He replied to the Redguard's words. Thinking back to the Beggars he had questioned, and mildly chastising himself but given the circumstances, it was going to be a thing he deals with, for better or for worse.

But he moved on to speak on the matter. "Yes, the Emperor's been murdered. And I highly doubt anyone could make a move in this city without your leader knowing, I am sure he's the go-to for finding out things. Willing to trade services for information."

@Wade Von Doom @BazusoTheGrey
"As noble as that is from you, I'm afraid our dealing's with outsiders in our Guild is very strict. Even for members of the Knights, not all share Callintus' 'appreciation' for our services. If you wish to trade your services for what we have, we need to know you can be trusted. And since we're all here..." He looked to the Argonian and Dark Elf. If Hei and Layyel wished to know more, then it seemed they needed to pass the test for Guild membership.

Squatting somewhat away from the talking tinies, Layyel tried his best to pay attention to them since they were talking about something serious sounding. Of course, most of the serious-sounding things were things that Layyel didn't really understand since the tinies were talking all sneaky-like. So, he continued to squat and watched as the dark tiny said some things to Serious Tiny (who was named Hay, or something? Odd name.) then started looking at the other weird tinies.

After that, things went quiet for some reason. Looking between all of them, it was clear that someone was supposed to say something to continue on whatever it was dark tiny said but for some reason, no one was talking. After a few pensive moments, Layyel reached out to Hay and poked him in the back. With a raspy growl, Layyel tried his best to whisper out, "Hey... whaat... doooo? Weeee... dooooo... sneaky?"

@Wade Von Doom @The Wanderer

Hei/BK-201
Bout to do some initiation.

Hei listened as the man spoke, understanding the concern and the requirements for information on the matter. Judging from the other faces gathered, these were the other recruits for this Guild.

His thoughts were dashed when Layyel poked Hei in the back, the giant pushing the Contractor forward somewhat. Turning back to the giant, Hei had to mentally repress the urge to sigh as he explained to Layyel. "Yes, we do 'sneaky.'" He spoke slow for the giant to understand. Turning back to the 'recruiter' before speaking.

"So what's the test and rules?" Since assassin wasn't in their name, Hei got a good feeling that killing was going to end up having a less than ideal result.

@BazusoTheGrey @Wade Von Doom
"Very good." The Redguard smiled as Hei and his giant friend agreed. "Armand Christophe," he finally introduced himself, "and these here are your current rivals. Methredhel," the Dark Elf, "and Amusei," the Argonian. "Everyone is here. Let's begin. Each of you is seeking membership in the Thieves Guild, with some in need of it more than others," meaning Hei and Layyel.

"The Thieves Guild is not a myth. We are followers of the Grey Fox, and I am his Doyen. Merely by finding me, you have passed the first test. It's unusual for us to have three potential recruits at the same time. Rather than the normal test of skill, I'm going to make this a contest." Layyel seemed to be more of a pet to Hei, so didn't count as a recruit.

"That's not fair!" Amusei cried out.

"Methredhel, you know the rules. However, for the sake Amusei and the newcomers, let me state them clearly. Whoever brings me the diary of Amantius Allectus, without killing him, will be invited into the guild." Armand explained.

"Hah! I'll have it before sunrise!" Methredhel declared.

"It's somewhere in the Imperial City. The beggars will help you locate it, for a price. I can sell you lockpicks if you need them. Five gold per lockpick. And one more thing. You cannot kill each other during this trial. We may be thieves, but we're not murderers." Armand clarified, before Methredhel was already off running. Nearby were some beggars asleep in sleeping bags by the walls of the waterfront, and Amusei looked absolutely befuddled as to where to even start looking, since he was wearing just rags, and looked penniless.

"Maybe he lives in the Elven Gardens district?" He muttered to himself, before heading off in the same direction Methredhel did.

"May fortune favor you, my new friends." Armand said, before winking to Hei and Layyel.

The inn keeper himself, behind the front desk, was cleaning a few mugs with a damp rag, and just like the others in town, eyed the three with utter chagrin. "Make it quick." He said to them before they could even ask their question.
Corvo Attano

"We'll stay the night here," Corvo said, in a voice that brokered little disagreement, indeed making it quick. He put down a coinpurse on the counter to pay for their stay, as he looked around the inn, frowning at its interior. It was a rather dingy location; poorly-lit, covered in ancient spiderwebs, and there was a vague, eerie sense of being watched that seemed to be one of the place's defining traits. "Not the most cheerful of places to pass through, this town of yours."
"Outsiders have never been kind to us." The inn keeper simply said, before taking the whole coin purse to count. "Hmmm, 28, 29, 30..." He then looked up to the three, before telling them, "I suppose this'll be enough for you all. It's 30 gold per night, and you'll have to share the room together."

"How generous." Shakira remarked sarcastically.

"Take the stairs up to the right, the room on the left. No visitors allowed. And no pets." He took the gold, and passed back Corvo's bag, which was nearly empty.

"Thank you." Jin said, bowing slightly to the inn keeper.

"Just keep to yourselves here." The inn keeper seemed unimpressed, returning to his bar duties of cleaning the mugs. When the three entered their room, there would be two bedrooms separated by a small hallway. The bedroom on the left was clean, tidy, and illuminated by lit candles. There was a desk for writing, a table with a single chair, a book shelf with but four old books covered in dust, and drapes along the walls that were faded and stained brown.

The room on the right, however, was a complete mess. The window illuminated the room with outside light, but the furniture was knocked over, the bed sheets thrown off the bed, and plates and bowls smashed along the floor like it had been ransacked. Jin, already feeling uneased about the room, grabbed the chair from the left bedroom and placed it under the doorknob to their room, blocking it in case anyone tried to enter.

Shakira, meanwhile, looked around the ransacked room. "No blood at least." He mentioned to the others as he looked over the bed and floor. "I'll take this room." If only because if someone did enter, and the others were overtaken, he could just jump out the window to make a run for it.

-----------------------------------------

MEANWHILE:

Erin's strategy of 'just get it over with,' may not have been the best course of action for her, as out of the dark, a dozen eyes glowing in her direction from a single figure, jumped her way; it's massive, dangling arms trying to smash down upon her from over head. More glowing red eyes soon began to look her way.

IPbr119.jpeg

Hei/BK-201

The Contractor listened to the Redguard as he explained the rules. No killing the holder of the book, nor killing any of the other recruits. Hei had some gold on him, which he used to buy himself some lockpicks,

The rest was going to be used for bribing for information out of the beggars. But first he had to explain to Layyel. "No killing alright, but if you see anyone running off with the book that isn't us. You grab them and hold them gentle but firm enough they can't escape." He said real careful and often repeating it until hopefully Layyel got it. But right now he was on the timer, so he approached the beggars, nudging them wake to hold a handful of gold to them.

"Amantius Allectus, know where his home is?" He asked.

@Wade Von Doom @BazusoTheGrey
"Uuhg, wha'?" The first begger muttered as Hei woke him up. The sound of gold quickly brought him to his senses for Hei's question. "Ohh, anything for you! He lives in the Temple District on the far east side.:" He pointed him and Layyel in the direction of where to go to get there, up to the doors leading to the waterfront. If they were quick enough, they could see the Dark Elf making a quick haste through the shadows towards where the house was, the first door around the corner to the back alley besides the doors leading to the Arboretum. She was keeping to the shadows to avoid any guards along the streets seeing her in the faint light of torches lit along the sidewalks.

Erin

Running straight into yet another terrifying entity, she wasn't exactly sure if they were friendly or not, but if the creatures chasing her were anything to go by, she assumed not.

Doing as one does when faced with an opponent larger than she was, she pulled her leg back, and slammed it as hard as she could into her opponent's weakpoint, in this case, the man's groin, before attempting to slip past him and continue her escape down the corridor.

She doubted they'd last very long, and while she wished she'd been able to take that strange scimitar off of him, she didn't want to test her grip strength against his while being chased by a horde of monsters.

At the best, he handled the monsters and she escaped, at the worst, they somehow joined forces and she got to run away with a little bit of distance advantage, but either way, she liked the situation she'd made for herself, despite everything.

Erin was getting a little tired of running aimlessly through dark corridors, it wasn't the first time she'd gotten lost, but she'd never gotten lost while being chased by such a persistent crowd. The fatigue was starting to get to her. As fit as she was, her body was slick with sweat, yet onwards she continued, with revenge on her mind.
The swift kick to the dick was met by her new attacker with a look of confusion, not phasing him in the slightest, and only temporarily stopping his upward attack, giving Erin enough time to not only give him the slip, but also avoid a sudden attack from the darkness, as a Bloathead came jumping out with its fists together to smash down on top of Erin. Instead the masked man was wrecked into the ground on his back. In his tiring running, Erin would trip over a weapon. Finally!



Club.png

Just in time as well, as another Bloathead came charging at her, trying to smash her head in with a flying fist from its right hand. Luck would still be on her side though, as she would vaguely make out the shape of ladder going up along the wall.

Shakira and Jin came over to also read the same entry, with Jin chiming in with, "I doubt this woman left this here by mistake."

"What made you guess?" Shakira remarked sarcastically, looking over the room once again in its current state. "Maybe we should all stay up."
"Indeed," murmured Corvo, allowing the diary to close with a quiet clap in his hands. "Otherwise, we may find ourselves sharing her fate, whatever it was. I believe this constitutes partial evidence the locals, or at least certain groups among them, maybe hostile."

After a moment to think, Corvo started looking around the room and pictured how a fight would look inside, should it break out. Their main defensive point would be the entryway, given its relatively narrow space and tightness. It was a perfect chokepoint and kill field, leveling the playing field sufficiently that even the three of them would be able to, with the correct preparation, take on tenfold the amount in men. And for Corvo, this was doubly true, due to his magic.

"It'd be wise to, at the very least, barricade the possible points of ingress. If either of you knows how we could even trap them," he proposed.
"The door is the only likely way in. The window is too far from the ground, unless they use ladders or perhaps a secret entrance into here." Jin theorized, although Corvo wouldn't see any in his Dark Vision. "Let's move the bookcases in front of the door, leaning them against each other to increase resistance if anyone tries knocking it down."
Tsunade- Character Sheet


Like that, the assassin went down, with the stone ground cracking as she landed back first from Tsunade's throw. The chase, as short as it lasted, was over.

...... Except the assassin's grip on Tsunade's wrist was just as iron-locked as hers was. After a few moments, the assassin stood back up, twisting under Tsunade's arm to pull her elbow back, and again, with knife in hand, tried stabbing her between the shoulder blades.

Just when she has thought the assassin out cold, Tsunade finds her arm twisted behind her back and she knows a blade is about to be stabbed into her back. She has underestimated this assassin and feels she deserves the pain that shoots into her back.

But the assassin has also underestimated Tsunade even after experiencing her strength.The pain of being stabbed in the back is no deterrent for her when Tsunade starts her counter-attack by squeezing the wrist she holds with force enough to break bone;her left heel stomps back and down onto the assassins’ left foot to break that foot; she lets go of the assassin to spin around and hit her in the kidney; lower back; shoulder;and temple. Each blow is just under the force to break bone and collectively should subject the assassin to enough pain and trauma to incapacitate her.

If that does not suffice, Tsunade tackles the assassin to the ground from behind with her left knee held fast to the base of the spine and hands holding both arms to the ground.
The assassin yells out in pain as there's a audible crack in her wrist from Tsunade's squeeze, and stumbles onto her knee once her foot breaks. Each strike after only pushes the assassin back, the pain making her unable to defend each attack, until she was staggering on her feet, not quick down just yet. Then, with a loud bonk noise, Callintus' shield smashed into the back of her head, causing the assassin to fall face down onto the ground.

He was out of breath, one hand on his knee as he tried to get it back. "Huff.... huff.... By the Nine.... I'm too old for this....." He muttered out to Tsunade, before moving over to her, "Here," he signaled her to turn around so he could pull out the knife.
 
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Tsunade- Character Sheet


On the last jab, the assassin tried grabbing her wrist with a free hand, then with her other, pulled out a small steel blade, twisted under Tsunade's arm, and tried slashing down from her wrist to her armpit, deep enough to at least draw blood.

Tsunade allows the assassin to grab her wrist. The instant the kunoichi feels those fingers close on her wrist, the assassin would feel the same steel grip close around her wrist. Actually. Harder. Inescapably hard.

"HRAAAAGH!" Tsunade uses her strength to whip the assassin against the ground, not enough to kill her of course, but sufficient to knock her out, or the very least render her unable to move from the breaking of bones in her arms and legs.
Like that, the assassin went down, with the stone ground cracking as she landed back first from Tsunade's throw. The chase, as short as it lasted, was over.

...... Except the assassin's grip on Tsunade's wrist was just as iron-locked as hers was. After a few moments, the assassin stood back up, twisting under Tsunade's arm to pull her elbow back, and again, with knife in hand, tried stabbing her between the shoulder blades.

"A Light Raiment, huh? You sure? I figured you for the Heavy Raiment type. you know, hide behind a skin of steel?" He mockingly gestured. "Hmph. Okay then, here." He handed it over to Artis. "Put that on, see if it fits okay. Preferably without the pajamas on." Artis wasn't gonna fight with his black raincoat on. "Here the rules: You fight for the blue team. You fight against the yellow team. In order to fight in the Arena you must wear an Arena Battle Raiment. The Battle Raiment covers your entire body. You can use your own helmet, shield, and weapon, so choose those items wisely. The Battle Raiment's already enchanted, so you can't muck with it. But aside from that, anything goes. Magic, stealth, whatever you need to win." Owyn explained as Artis put on his Raiment.

"You can compete in the Arena any day from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Just come to me, tell me you're ready for a match, and away you'll go. Got it? Good. If you actually manage to win a fight, don't get any ideas about looting your opponent's corpse! That's strictly forbidden!" He quickly added before finishing up the rules.
- Artis Solum, Twilight Warrior - Bloodworks Arena -

Artis merely raised an eyebrow in response to Owyn's mockery, then took the Light Raiment he was given and looked over it, noting that it was cleaner than he expected, then looked back to Owyn as he explained the rules. The fights would be between two teams; Blue and Yellow, with Artis being part of the former. Once Owyn mentioned the need for a helmet, shield and weapon, Artis would openly asked: "Bring my own of those items, right?" Just for clarification, only noting to himself that he had none of those items, save for his Keyblade which would likely draw some unwelcome looks, so perhaps procuring a sword would be wise. For that however, as well as the shield and helmet, Artis would need money and he had none, save for the currency of his own world which definitely wouldn't fly here.

Finding an area secluded enough for Artis to don his raiment, he would do so after removing his Black Coat, hanging it up somewhere safe, all while keeping his ear out for everything else Owyn was telling the boy, particularly regarding the enchantment of his Raiment, of which Artis could feel the aura of as he slipped it on, and the use of magic and stealth being allowed.

Straightening his Raiment, Artis would stand before Owyn again as he finished up, feeling rather comfortable in this new outfit. He then briefly laughed as Owyn made special mention that looting was forbidden. "Didn't even cross my mind." He added with a clearing of his throat. "So, what time is it now?" Artis asked, then after being answered, mockingly or not, he would speak in earnest: "I'll need to peruse town for a bit before I do any battles first. Then I'll be back here and in the arena before you know it." Artis explained, but before departure, he would sheepishly inquire: "I'm assuming I have to leave the Raiment here if I go anywhere other than the Arena?" The boy felt it would be better to be safe than sorry, embarrassment be damned.

@Wade Von Doom
"Raiment's yours, kid. You'd look more in place around the city in that than your pajamas." Owyn remarked, before adding, "The time's still for battling for new couple hours, so if you're plans for right now are setting up your will and saying goodbye to your family before your fight, be quick about it. I got other fighters who'd love to not wait in line for a rookie like yourself." Owyn wasn't gonna give special treatment for Artis just because he wasn't from around her and had to go find the others.

If he wanted to fight, he'd have to wait his turn in line with other fighters.

"Let me give you some advice, strangers," she began to say, his voice raised higher than theirs to cut into their discussion. "Leave. Now. You ain't welcome here. You're better off listening to your friend." She had such menace and aggression in her voice, like she was echoing the rest of the town through her voice.
Corvo Attano

Corvo narrowed his eyes in response, a hand moving to his blade. His fingers almost tickled the pommel, brushing against the hilt, but he didn't draw it from where it was, stuffed in his coat.

"I don't particularly care for your tone," he said, almost calling her insolent. "Surely, your small town has nothing to hide from a bunch of passerbies on their way to County Kvatch?"
"The only thing we have to hide is from you outsiders!" She raised her tone again, unflinching in Corvo's menace. "It's Outsiders like you that came and burned down our town, years ago. Ruined us. But we'll get ours back, one day soon. Now off with you, all of ya!" The woman yelled, before leaving them to return to her business.

"Friendly." Shakira remarked sarcastically.

"Do you know anything about this?" Jin asked, to which Shakira seemed flabbergasted Jin even thought to say that.

"I didn't even know this place existed until now!" He answered. With the three standing in the middle of town, there were at least three buildings of interest not burned to the ground. To their left was the inn, with the sign hanging from the doorway labeled 'Moslin's Inn.' To their right was the general store, also called, 'Moslin's Dry Goods.' And far down the center of town, at the end of the large dirt road, was a massive church.

Erin
Deep underground


The bare knight hissed quietly to themselves in the darkness. She didn't remember how she got here, and while the curse chipped away at her mind all the time, she was fairly certain she would've remembered something as big as getting caught and dropped in some dingy cell.

Shifting from her spot in the corner onto her feet, Erin gave the room a small look over with what little light there was. Grey walls, a bed, some apples, some bones, a skull, which she gave a annoyed glare at for it's mocking smile, and of course, the iron bars keeping her captive. It was very unusual, she'd never been in this situation in her journeys, always the one saving someone else, but never the one trapped without a way out.

The sound from outside the cage wasn't anything unusual, she'd fought all manner of beasts, but she couldn't keep the small flicker of fear rising in her chest at the idea of fighting it without any equipment. She could die a hundred times more, but it never made the pain any easier to take.

Reaching through the bars, she pulled the bowl into the cage. As an undead, she had no need for food, but she pushed into them with her hand anyway on the off-chance they held some magical way out. After all, if chests could stand up and tear her limb from limb, it wasn't too far out of the question that an apple could open a door.

While poking and prodding the apples for something metal, she also shoved at the bars to check if they'd fall over or not. Unlikely, but again, what did she have to lose?

"Someone's going to pay for this once I get out." she swore to the air, imagining some smug face being cut into by her blade, which she hoped wasn't far away. As strange as it was, she was fine wandering around without anything on, but her swords reminded her that she wasn't just some hollow quite yet. She was a knight, or at least had been, and both those and her shield were the few things that reminded her of it.
Erin would only end up hurting the palm of her hands when shoving at the bars. They were firmly connected to the walls of her cage. If she looked further around her cage though, she would find something interesting in the skull's mouth. A lockpick. And her cage door had a standard lock on it.

ARENA:

Owyn didn't seem phased by Artis' retort, like he didn't believe a word the keyblade wielder said. Still, he sighed once Artis finished speaking. "Well... at least you're trying to sound tough." He told him. "All right. It's your funeral. Welcome to the arena, you filthy Pit Dog. You're free to fight, so long as you know the rules of competition. Now," he moved around Artis to the armor cabinets, where some of the spare raiment's were located. At least the clean ones. "Now, let me give you your Battle Raiment. It's the uniform of all Arena combatants. Do you want a light raiment or a heavy raiment?" He opened up the cabinet to show them off. The heavy was a light grey and faded blue ornament, while the light was the same but with black iron.
- Artis Solum, Twilight Warrior - Arena -

Owyn's stonefaced expression made it clear that Artis's threat hadn't phased the man and for a moment, Artis worried that he had just embarrassed himself something fierce. Did he not give it enough oomph? Did he say a word wrong? Perhaps his voice cracked, that would just be insulting. He didn't need to worry himself for long though, as Owyn sighed and begrudgingly welcomed the Keyblade Wielder into the Bloodworks Arena, all the while granting Artis the epithet of "Pit Dog".

After moving towards some large cabinets, Owyn presented Artis with various Battle Raiments for him to don for the contest of blood, quizzing him on which level of protection he'd prefer.

"A light raiment. I prefer to be quick on my feet in a battle." Not wanting to give Owyn cause to be angry, Artis kept his reservations about needing a raiment to himself, preferring his Black Coat, but would play along for the sake of participation and hopefully, some enjoyment.

@Wade Von Doom
"A Light Raiment, huh? You sure? I figured you for the Heavy Raiment type. you know, hide behind a skin of steel?" He mockingly gestured. "Hmph. Okay then, here." He handed it over to Artis. "Put that on, see if it fits okay. Preferably without the pajamas on." Artis wasn't gonna fight with his black raincoat on. "Here the rules: You fight for the blue team. You fight against the yellow team. In order to fight in the Arena you must wear an Arena Battle Raiment. The Battle Raiment covers your entire body. You can use your own helmet, shield, and weapon, so choose those items wisely. The Battle Raiment's already enchanted, so you can't muck with it. But aside from that, anything goes. Magic, stealth, whatever you need to win." Owyn explained as Artis put on his Raiment.

"You can compete in the Arena any day from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Just come to me, tell me you're ready for a match, and away you'll go. Got it? Good. If you actually manage to win a fight, don't get any ideas about looting your opponent's corpse! That's strictly forbidden!" He quickly added before finishing up the rules.
"Ahhh, our mysterious friends have arrived." The redguard said aloud as Hei approached with Layyel. "I was wondering if you would show up. The beggars in the city were curious about you. They were quick to warn us about if you showed up, in case you were Imperial spies, since you were seen with The Crusader himself." Meaning Callintus. "But, I can tell just from your appearance, that doesn't seem the case. An Imperial spy wouldn't dare wear such a getup. Nor would he bring along his pet troll." He eyed Layyel, another give away Hei wasn't being the most sneaky of guys right now with that hulking figure following him.

"Besides, Callintus may be in favor by the empire, but he's worked with the Guild to garner our trust. And from what I'm to understand, you're here to seek our hidden leader." There was much to be said about Hei before he even said a word, yet the Redguard was quick to trust him immediately. Something which Hei should be grateful for, as no one else could be given such faith in a first meeting.

Hei
Gathered at the Waterfront, talkin' to some Thieves


"Indeed, many thanks." He replied to the Redguard's words. Thinking back to the Beggars he had questioned, and mildly chastising himself but given the circumstances, it was going to be a thing he deals with, for better or for worse.

But he moved on to speak on the matter. "Yes, the Emperor's been murdered. And I highly doubt anyone could make a move in this city without your leader knowing, I am sure he's the go-to for finding out things. Willing to trade services for information."

@Wade Von Doom @BazusoTheGrey
"As noble as that is from you, I'm afraid our dealing's with outsiders in our Guild is very strict. Even for members of the Knights, not all share Callintus' 'appreciation' for our services. If you wish to trade your services for what we have, we need to know you can be trusted. And since we're all here..." He looked to the Argonian and Dark Elf. If Hei and Layyel wished to know more, then it seemed they needed to pass the test for Guild membership.

Squatting somewhat away from the talking tinies, Layyel tried his best to pay attention to them since they were talking about something serious sounding. Of course, most of the serious-sounding things were things that Layyel didn't really understand since the tinies were talking all sneaky-like. So, he continued to squat and watched as the dark tiny said some things to Serious Tiny (who was named Hay, or something? Odd name.) then started looking at the other weird tinies.

After that, things went quiet for some reason. Looking between all of them, it was clear that someone was supposed to say something to continue on whatever it was dark tiny said but for some reason, no one was talking. After a few pensive moments, Layyel reached out to Hay and poked him in the back. With a raspy growl, Layyel tried his best to whisper out, "Hey... whaat... doooo? Weeee... dooooo... sneaky?"

@Wade Von Doom @The Wanderer

Hei/BK-201
Bout to do some initiation.

Hei listened as the man spoke, understanding the concern and the requirements for information on the matter. Judging from the other faces gathered, these were the other recruits for this Guild.

His thoughts were dashed when Layyel poked Hei in the back, the giant pushing the Contractor forward somewhat. Turning back to the giant, Hei had to mentally repress the urge to sigh as he explained to Layyel. "Yes, we do 'sneaky.'" He spoke slow for the giant to understand. Turning back to the 'recruiter' before speaking.

"So what's the test and rules?" Since assassin wasn't in their name, Hei got a good feeling that killing was going to end up having a less than ideal result.

@BazusoTheGrey @Wade Von Doom
"Very good." The Redguard smiled as Hei and his giant friend agreed. "Armand Christophe," he finally introduced himself, "and these here are your current rivals. Methredhel," the Dark Elf, "and Amusei," the Argonian. "Everyone is here. Let's begin. Each of you is seeking membership in the Thieves Guild, with some in need of it more than others," meaning Hei and Layyel.

"The Thieves Guild is not a myth. We are followers of the Grey Fox, and I am his Doyen. Merely by finding me, you have passed the first test. It's unusual for us to have three potential recruits at the same time. Rather than the normal test of skill, I'm going to make this a contest." Layyel seemed to be more of a pet to Hei, so didn't count as a recruit.

"That's not fair!" Amusei cried out.

"Methredhel, you know the rules. However, for the sake Amusei and the newcomers, let me state them clearly. Whoever brings me the diary of Amantius Allectus, without killing him, will be invited into the guild." Armand explained.

"Hah! I'll have it before sunrise!" Methredhel declared.

"It's somewhere in the Imperial City. The beggars will help you locate it, for a price. I can sell you lockpicks if you need them. Five gold per lockpick. And one more thing. You cannot kill each other during this trial. We may be thieves, but we're not murderers." Armand clarified, before Methredhel was already off running. Nearby were some beggars asleep in sleeping bags by the walls of the waterfront, and Amusei looked absolutely befuddled as to where to even start looking, since he was wearing just rags, and looked penniless.

"Maybe he lives in the Elven Gardens district?" He muttered to himself, before heading off in the same direction Methredhel did.

"May fortune favor you, my new friends." Armand said, before winking to Hei and Layyel.

The inn keeper himself, behind the front desk, was cleaning a few mugs with a damp rag, and just like the others in town, eyed the three with utter chagrin. "Make it quick." He said to them before they could even ask their question.
Corvo Attano

"We'll stay the night here," Corvo said, in a voice that brokered little disagreement, indeed making it quick. He put down a coinpurse on the counter to pay for their stay, as he looked around the inn, frowning at its interior. It was a rather dingy location; poorly-lit, covered in ancient spiderwebs, and there was a vague, eerie sense of being watched that seemed to be one of the place's defining traits. "Not the most cheerful of places to pass through, this town of yours."
"Outsiders have never been kind to us." The inn keeper simply said, before taking the whole coin purse to count. "Hmmm, 28, 29, 30..." He then looked up to the three, before telling them, "I suppose this'll be enough for you all. It's 30 gold per night, and you'll have to share the room together."

"How generous." Shakira remarked sarcastically.

"Take the stairs up to the right, the room on the left. No visitors allowed. And no pets." He took the gold, and passed back Corvo's bag, which was nearly empty.

"Thank you." Jin said, bowing slightly to the inn keeper.

"Just keep to yourselves here." The inn keeper seemed unimpressed, returning to his bar duties of cleaning the mugs. When the three entered their room, there would be two bedrooms separated by a small hallway. The bedroom on the left was clean, tidy, and illuminated by lit candles. There was a desk for writing, a table with a single chair, a book shelf with but four old books covered in dust, and drapes along the walls that were faded and stained brown.

The room on the right, however, was a complete mess. The window illuminated the room with outside light, but the furniture was knocked over, the bed sheets thrown off the bed, and plates and bowls smashed along the floor like it had been ransacked. Jin, already feeling uneased about the room, grabbed the chair from the left bedroom and placed it under the doorknob to their room, blocking it in case anyone tried to enter.

Shakira, meanwhile, looked around the ransacked room. "No blood at least." He mentioned to the others as he looked over the bed and floor. "I'll take this room." If only because if someone did enter, and the others were overtaken, he could just jump out the window to make a run for it.

-----------------------------------------

MEANWHILE:

Erin's strategy of 'just get it over with,' may not have been the best course of action for her, as out of the dark, a dozen eyes glowing in her direction from a single figure, jumped her way; it's massive, dangling arms trying to smash down upon her from over head. More glowing red eyes soon began to look her way.

IPbr119.jpeg

Hei/BK-201

The Contractor listened to the Redguard as he explained the rules. No killing the holder of the book, nor killing any of the other recruits. Hei had some gold on him, which he used to buy himself some lockpicks,

The rest was going to be used for bribing for information out of the beggars. But first he had to explain to Layyel. "No killing alright, but if you see anyone running off with the book that isn't us. You grab them and hold them gentle but firm enough they can't escape." He said real careful and often repeating it until hopefully Layyel got it. But right now he was on the timer, so he approached the beggars, nudging them wake to hold a handful of gold to them.

"Amantius Allectus, know where his home is?" He asked.

@Wade Von Doom @BazusoTheGrey
"Uuhg, wha'?" The first begger muttered as Hei woke him up. The sound of gold quickly brought him to his senses for Hei's question. "Ohh, anything for you! He lives in the Temple District on the far east side.:" He pointed him and Layyel in the direction of where to go to get there, up to the doors leading to the waterfront. If they were quick enough, they could see the Dark Elf making a quick haste through the shadows towards where the house was, the first door around the corner to the back alley besides the doors leading to the Arboretum. She was keeping to the shadows to avoid any guards along the streets seeing her in the faint light of torches lit along the sidewalks.

Erin

Running straight into yet another terrifying entity, she wasn't exactly sure if they were friendly or not, but if the creatures chasing her were anything to go by, she assumed not.

Doing as one does when faced with an opponent larger than she was, she pulled her leg back, and slammed it as hard as she could into her opponent's weakpoint, in this case, the man's groin, before attempting to slip past him and continue her escape down the corridor.

She doubted they'd last very long, and while she wished she'd been able to take that strange scimitar off of him, she didn't want to test her grip strength against his while being chased by a horde of monsters.

At the best, he handled the monsters and she escaped, at the worst, they somehow joined forces and she got to run away with a little bit of distance advantage, but either way, she liked the situation she'd made for herself, despite everything.

Erin was getting a little tired of running aimlessly through dark corridors, it wasn't the first time she'd gotten lost, but she'd never gotten lost while being chased by such a persistent crowd. The fatigue was starting to get to her. As fit as she was, her body was slick with sweat, yet onwards she continued, with revenge on her mind.
The swift kick to the dick was met by her new attacker with a look of confusion, not phasing him in the slightest, and only temporarily stopping his upward attack, giving Erin enough time to not only give him the slip, but also avoid a sudden attack from the darkness, as a Bloathead came jumping out with its fists together to smash down on top of Erin. Instead the masked man was wrecked into the ground on his back. In his tiring running, Erin would trip over a weapon. Finally!



Club.png

Just in time as well, as another Bloathead came charging at her, trying to smash her head in with a flying fist from its right hand. Luck would still be on her side though, as she would vaguely make out the shape of ladder going up along the wall.

Shakira and Jin came over to also read the same entry, with Jin chiming in with, "I doubt this woman left this here by mistake."

"What made you guess?" Shakira remarked sarcastically, looking over the room once again in its current state. "Maybe we should all stay up."
"Indeed," murmured Corvo, allowing the diary to close with a quiet clap in his hands. "Otherwise, we may find ourselves sharing her fate, whatever it was. I believe this constitutes partial evidence the locals, or at least certain groups among them, maybe hostile."

After a moment to think, Corvo started looking around the room and pictured how a fight would look inside, should it break out. Their main defensive point would be the entryway, given its relatively narrow space and tightness. It was a perfect chokepoint and kill field, leveling the playing field sufficiently that even the three of them would be able to, with the correct preparation, take on tenfold the amount in men. And for Corvo, this was doubly true, due to his magic.

"It'd be wise to, at the very least, barricade the possible points of ingress. If either of you knows how we could even trap them," he proposed.
"The door is the only likely way in. The window is too far from the ground, unless they use ladders or perhaps a secret entrance into here." Jin theorized, although Corvo wouldn't see any in his Dark Vision. "Let's move the bookcases in front of the door, leaning them against each other to increase resistance if anyone tries knocking it down."
Tsunade- Character Sheet


Like that, the assassin went down, with the stone ground cracking as she landed back first from Tsunade's throw. The chase, as short as it lasted, was over.

...... Except the assassin's grip on Tsunade's wrist was just as iron-locked as hers was. After a few moments, the assassin stood back up, twisting under Tsunade's arm to pull her elbow back, and again, with knife in hand, tried stabbing her between the shoulder blades.

Just when she has thought the assassin out cold, Tsunade finds her arm twisted behind her back and she knows a blade is about to be stabbed into her back. She has underestimated this assassin and feels she deserves the pain that shoots into her back.

But the assassin has also underestimated Tsunade even after experiencing her strength.The pain of being stabbed in the back is no deterrent for her when Tsunade starts her counter-attack by squeezing the wrist she holds with force enough to break bone;her left heel stomps back and down onto the assassins’ left foot to break that foot; she lets go of the assassin to spin around and hit her in the kidney; lower back; shoulder;and temple. Each blow is just under the force to break bone and collectively should subject the assassin to enough pain and trauma to incapacitate her.

If that does not suffice, Tsunade tackles the assassin to the ground from behind with her left knee held fast to the base of the spine and hands holding both arms to the ground.
The assassin yells out in pain as there's a audible crack in her wrist from Tsunade's squeeze, and stumbles onto her knee once her foot breaks. Each strike after only pushes the assassin back, the pain making her unable to defend each attack, until she was staggering on her feet, not quick down just yet. Then, with a loud bonk noise, Callintus' shield smashed into the back of her head, causing the assassin to fall face down onto the ground.

He was out of breath, one hand on his knee as he tried to get it back. "Huff.... huff.... By the Nine.... I'm too old for this....." He muttered out to Tsunade, before moving over to her, "Here," he signaled her to turn around so he could pull out the knife.
Hei/BK-201
Following a thief


Hearing the information and quickly filing it away to the forefront of his mind, Hei began to run in the direction he was pointed towards, waving at Layyel to follow, being the first one to round the corner, Hei caught a glimpse of the Dark Elf already hauling away towards the same destination he was hoping to get to first.

Using his wires, Hei threw one onto the roof of the building he was next to, using the device to quickly ascend higher until with a flip, the Contractor was now on the roof and running to perform a skillfully timed jump to the next roof, and using the wire to assist where the gap was too much of a leap for him to pull off. Hei was good enough to twist his body mid jump to perform feats of acrobatics but he couldn't fly.

All the while he would hope that Layyel was keeping up and remembered the game plan, grab anyone with the book and make sure that they are held until Hei comes around to take the book. And thanks to his different path taking, Hei would get a headstart on the Dark Elf, eventually outpacing her enough to the point that he was the one to get there before her. Experience telling Hei to wait for a second, at least until the Dark Elf approached the right house, at which point before she could even begin lockpick the door Hei was descending via wire and approaching quickly to grab her arm and the back of her neck. His body glowing blue as he activated his ability.

However, instead of her suddenly convulsing from the fatal current that had claimed so many over the years that Hei was active in the Syndicate, Hei watched as her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she went unconscious. He would have to work quickly as he had about five-ten minutes before she'd wake up with a killer headache and a bad temperament. So, laying her down in such a way that'd indicate drunkenness, even grabbing a left-over bottle of something and leaving it near her as he went about to lockpick the door and get inside. Using years of being a stealthy assassin to quietly do so, peeking in to look around to get an idea of the layout of the room and see if there was anyone waiting.

@Wade Von Doom @BazusoTheGrey
 
Erin

The bearer of the curse, despite being under attack, gave a victorious laugh as she rolled to pick up the club and brought it up in a swing, bonking the monster's disfigured head with all the pent-up fury and annoyance of a very pissed undead, especially excited at the prospect of getting out of the endless grimy dark tunnels and to somewhere she could actually see.

Charging forward, she'd leap on top of the bloathead's chest and begin hammering it's face until it stopped moving, thankful that the creature's arms were so disfigured that it couldn't fight back, before clambering off of it with a trickle of souls flowing into her, and beginning her climb up the ladder, singing a small tune to herself.

"What a thrill~..."
 
Tsunade- Character Sheet


“Ha! Now stay down!” Tsunade exclaims at the now prone body of the assassin. That had been one of the more annoying bouts she has had in a long time. If it had gone any longer, Tsunade had had a mind to use her lightsaber to hack off one or both legs and used medical juts to keep her alive for questioning. She groans at the pain in her back, and follows Callintus’ gesture to turn around, uttering a stifled groan when he extracts the blade. She weaves a few hand signs for a jury’s that stops her bleeding and numbs the pain receptors.

“Just a flesh wound. I’ve been stabbed much worse.” Tsunade assures her companion before lifting the assassin up from the ground to drape across her back and shoulders with no effort.

“Lead the way. I will treat her and we can interrogate her for answers.” She tells Callintus, waiting and looking around for any other surprises.
 
As Hay used metal rope thingies to do things that left Layyel mildly flummoxed, the giant did his best to keep up with his tiny friend.

Surprisingly, he was able to keep up with the professional tiny, and after dealing with a couple of twitchy guard tinies by flicking them on the face and accidentally scuffing some random archways, Layyel had managed to reach Hay just as he began to poke around with a door.

Squeezing his way into the alleyway, Layyel squatted alongside his much sneakier friend and watched him do... whatever it was he was doing. Truthfully, the intricacies of stealth were lost on Layyel, and after watching Hay do his thing for a couple of seconds, Layyel decided to just shove him inside the room with one of his meaty fingers before trying to fit into the doorway himself.

Unsurprisingly, Layyel couldn't fit inside of the doorway, and as Hei would recover from being pushed, he would see Layyel trying to force various bits of his body into the building, to no degree of success.
 
Erin

The bearer of the curse, despite being under attack, gave a victorious laugh as she rolled to pick up the club and brought it up in a swing, bonking the monster's disfigured head with all the pent-up fury and annoyance of a very pissed undead, especially excited at the prospect of getting out of the endless grimy dark tunnels and to somewhere she could actually see.

Charging forward, she'd leap on top of the bloathead's chest and begin hammering it's face until it stopped moving, thankful that the creature's arms were so disfigured that it couldn't fight back, before clambering off of it with a trickle of souls flowing into her, and beginning her climb up the ladder, singing a small tune to herself.

"What a thrill~..."
At the top of the ladder, when opening up the trapdoor, she would be blinded by light once again. It led to the back of the bar in the inn, with a shelf of jugs to her left, and a barrel of mead to her right, and the innkeeper himself still behind the bar, cleaning the top with a used rag. "What the--" he muttered at the trapdoor squeaked open from the rusty hinges. "What the devil are you doing down there?!" He shouted next, quickly marching over to her with rage and confusion in his face, not from the fact that she was down there, like he asked, but that she was trying to get out from down there.

Tsunade- Character Sheet


“Ha! Now stay down!” Tsunade exclaims at the now prone body of the assassin. That had been one of the more annoying bouts she has had in a long time. If it had gone any longer, Tsunade had had a mind to use her lightsaber to hack off one or both legs and used medical juts to keep her alive for questioning. She groans at the pain in her back, and follows Callintus’ gesture to turn around, uttering a stifled groan when he extracts the blade. She weaves a few hand signs for a jury’s that stops her bleeding and numbs the pain receptors.

“Just a flesh wound. I’ve been stabbed much worse.” Tsunade assures her companion before lifting the assassin up from the ground to drape across her back and shoulders with no effort.

“Lead the way. I will treat her and we can interrogate her for answers.” She tells Callintus, waiting and looking around for any other surprises.
"Even still, take this," he handed her a minor healing potion to help stop the bleeding and at least heal the wound enough to cauterize it. "We might need to head through the sewers. Who knows who we can--"

"HALT!" A guard shouted, as a dozen came running in from around the corner, having heard the fighting and swords drawn on the duo.

"Trust..." Callintus finished. "Ahhh.... Hello!" Callintus said to them next, changing his voice to be more cheery as he raised his hands up. "Apologies for the damage! We were dealing with this," he pointed to the unconscious assassin. "See, me and the young lady here, we were attacked by both this and several other guards--"

"Thrown down your weapons!" The guard demanded, "You are to be charged with murder of Imperial Watch guards and connections to the assassination of Emperor Uriel Septim VII!"

"Wait now, there's a misunderstanding--"

"Sir Cadorna, if you resist arrest, you and the Knights Divine will be considered enemies of the Empire!"

"We haven't murdered anyone! The guards attacked us, they're working with whoever is behind this, and their captain may be one of the conspirators!"

"Such accusations without proof--"

"We have proof!" Callintus again pointed to the assassin. "If you will just let us bring this woman to the prison, and talk with the other captains of the watch, I believe we can clear up this--" He turned around to see more guards had blocked them off from the opposite side, some of which were the ones that had attacked them earlier.

"It's them alright!" The one Tsunade threw into the pond shouted. "We saw them speaking with that assassin on his shoulders, and when we confronted them, they attacked us!"

As Hay used metal rope thingies to do things that left Layyel mildly flummoxed, the giant did his best to keep up with his tiny friend.

Surprisingly, he was able to keep up with the professional tiny, and after dealing with a couple of twitchy guard tinies by flicking them on the face and accidentally scuffing some random archways, Layyel had managed to reach Hay just as he began to poke around with a door.

Squeezing his way into the alleyway, Layyel squatted alongside his much sneakier friend and watched him do... whatever it was he was doing. Truthfully, the intricacies of stealth were lost on Layyel, and after watching Hay do his thing for a couple of seconds, Layyel decided to just shove him inside the room with one of his meaty fingers before trying to fit into the doorway himself.

Unsurprisingly, Layyel couldn't fit inside of the doorway, and as Hei would recover from being pushed, he would see Layyel trying to force various bits of his body into the building, to no degree of success.
Unfortunately for Layyel, in pushing Hei through the doorway, he also smashed the door itself off its hinges, both ripping it off the stone wall it was connected to, bending the wooden door with a loud crackling noise, and sending it smashing down onto the floor. Thankfully, no one was in the living room itself, but someone was sure to hear if they were home.

800px-OB-interior-Amantius_Allectus%27_House.jpg
 
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Erin

As she finished the ladder (and her song) and pushed up the trap door, she found herself coming face-to-legs with.. Somebody, but based on their reaction, they weren't friendly, meaning she had the go ahead to attack.

Launching herself out of the hole in the ground, she'd throw the club to the side and she threw her grounded self at the man's legs, giving his lower-half a bear hug as she tried to tackle him to the ground and even the disadvantage.

Quite literally, sweeping the man off his feet, she'd then proceed to crawl onto his back and pin his left arm under her, pulling his right arm farther back than would be comfortable, using her legs for balance. Fury told her to break the man's arms straight away, but she wasn't quite sure where she wanted to go from here. Her arm muscles were tensed worryingly tight around his own.

If he was aggressive, then chances are other people would be too, and as capable and eager as she was to fight, she wanted to get her swords back before she returned to the tried and true method of "Erin vs the world".

Either way, this was the first thing that had spoken, and if it spoke, it felt. Her body was coursing with anger-fueled adrenaline. She'd seen a lot, but never before had something been taken from her, and she did little to hide the sheer wrath on her contorted face.

"Should've killed me while you had the chance. Where's my swords? Tell me now before I end your life, and if you don't know, then you better tell me where I can get some other swords. If you do, you'll get off.. lightly maimed. Five.. Four... Three...-"
 
Erin

As she finished the ladder (and her song) and pushed up the trap door, she found herself coming face-to-legs with.. Somebody, but based on their reaction, they weren't friendly, meaning she had the go ahead to attack.

Launching herself out of the hole in the ground, she'd throw the club to the side and she threw her grounded self at the man's legs, giving his lower-half a bear hug as she tried to tackle him to the ground and even the disadvantage.

Quite literally, sweeping the man off his feet, she'd then proceed to crawl onto his back and pin his left arm under her, pulling his right arm farther back than would be comfortable, using her legs for balance. Fury told her to break the man's arms straight away, but she wasn't quite sure where she wanted to go from here. Her arm muscles were tensed worryingly tight around his own.

If he was aggressive, then chances are other people would be too, and as capable and eager as she was to fight, she wanted to get her swords back before she returned to the tried and true method of "Erin vs the world".

Either way, this was the first thing that had spoken, and if it spoke, it felt. Her body was coursing with anger-fueled adrenaline. She'd seen a lot, but never before had something been taken from her, and she did little to hide the sheer wrath on her contorted face.

"Should've killed me while you had the chance. Where's my swords? Tell me now before I end your life, and if you don't know, then you better tell me where I can get some other swords. If you do, you'll get off.. lightly maimed. Five.. Four... Three...-"
Erin barely had to fight him, as she overpowered the old man easily, even when he tried to fight back, her strength outmatched his. "AHH!" He shouted as she bent his arms back enough to the point if she applied any more pressure, there was sure to be a snapping noise. "Ahhh! What the hell have you done?!" He shouted to her next, angered by her appearance from the caves below, only to be cut off by her wanting her weapons back.

While she counted down, upstairs the three would hear the screams of the innkeeper. Jin and Shakira looked to Corvo for a few seconds, before Jin was the first to charge out the room. "No, wait!" Shakira tried to stop him, but the Samurai was already out the door, rushing down the stairs loud enough for Erin to hear before he appeared from around the corner.

"Stop!" Jin told her, raising his blade from its sheathe. "Whoever you are, step away from him!" Considering the suspicious stuff they found upstairs, a half naked woman covered in scars looking mighty pissed off didn't actually seem all that implausible if there was kidnapping involved in this town. But the innkeeper being injured wouldn't help them.
 
Erin

Erin sighed in annoyance, eyes narrowing and training on them as they entered. Of course the old man was a fool and was willing to break his arm in order to alert the others, but with closer inspection, these ones seemed... Distinctly different, or at least the one with the mask and the other one in weird armour. Nothing she'd ever seen before.

The lizard was a strange sight, but it must be sentient if it hadn't just rushed to eat her head or something like all the lizards she'd met usually tried to do.

"My name is Erin, and I need my swords. They're... Important." She'd hiss by, briefly trying to remember just why they were important, but finding herself unable.

"So either you let me get what I need from this man, or I'm going take that club and hit everyone here over the head with it, then throw you down that cellar to meet all the lovely things there." She continued, not relinquishing her grip on the man's arm, though she did loosen her grip slightly to make it easier to grab the club if she needed to.

They might've thought it a joke if she weren't saying it with such adamant seriousness. Three vs one were odds she'd handled in the past, and fighting unknown magical opponents wasn't anything new either, so really, she liked her chances, especially compared to the odds she'd had back down the ladder.
 
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Tsunade- Character Sheet


“And what proof do you have other than your word?” Tsunade retorts to the guard who accuses them. She looks around at the other guards.

“We came here to help, and were attacked on our way to speak with Captain Hayn on the advice of Watch Captain Lex. That is one of our attackers-” She points at the guard. “And this one,” Tsunade motions slowly to the assassin on her shoulders. “,is the one who did the killing. I only knocked them unconcious. If I were not a righteous warrior the same as yourselves, you would all be dead instead of standing here hearing our pleas. We will surrender, but will not be detained as criminals. Is that understood? Or will you force me to knock out each and every one of you to escape?”
 
Corvo Attano

As opposed to his companions, Corvo called upon his magic in order to blink into the room, in a flash of cyan distortion.

It was a common scare tactic he liked to use - a potential foe appearing from nowhere and disappearing to nowhere could be disorienting to follow even for hardened and perceptive combat veterans, and demonstrating the ability to effortlessly translocate to anywhere in the room was a way to intimidate the naked woman. She might not show fear overtly, or indeed, not fear them as enemies, but it'd force her to recalculate her decision and approach to the situation if she knew that Corvo had the ability to instantaneously transmit himself behind her to attack and deny her motion space. If she dodged an attack from behind, after all, she'd only be stumbling into the blades of his own teammates.

"I believe you should calm down and reconsider your situation, firstly," Corvo said, as he thumbed the hammer of his pistol, "We have you outnumbered and wield magical abilities and weaponized contraptions unfamiliar to you. If your skill in combat is so great that you profess the ability to kill three men and throw them down a cellar, you should know well the disadvantage of not having information. We know nothing about who you are, nor you about us. Let's start with the following, miss Erin - why are your swords so important to you that you're willing to kill several people over them, and why do you believe this random innkeeper has them in his possession?"
 
Erin

The knight would seem slightly surprised at the teleportation, but shake her head. Things like that had patterns, and once the pattern was figured out, it wouldn't be much of a problem. She'd dealt with similar things before, and she could deal with it now. Fighting unknown opponents was nothing new, being outnumber was something she expected, the only thing unfamiliar was the fact that they hadn't started fighting her yet.

Definitely not hollowed, that's for sure.

"I know my situation just fine." Erin would spit at him bitterly, glaring at him and continuing her hold on the old man's arm before continuing with a warning edge to her unwaveringly confident voice. "And you should watch yourself. If you think I don't know your tricks, maybe you should be careful of my own tricks"

Thinking on his question, her face would twist in confusion, then annoyance apparently directed more towards herself than Corvo, returning to glaring at him once she'd figured she'd thought on it enough.

"I.. I don't know, but I know they're important to me, and I don't think, I know. He's obviously with the ones that threw me down there, and they're the ones that took my swords. A moment ago he was trying to kick me back down!"
 
"I.. I don't know, but I know they're important to me, and I don't think, I know. He's obviously with the ones that threw me down there, and they're the ones that took my swords. A moment ago he was trying to kick me back down!"
Corvo Attano

After a moment's thought, Corvo decided it'd be prudent to address the innkeeper, question him. It seemed like, at least tentatively, the situation was calming down from its initial turbulence.

"Have you done anything like that? Have you taken this woman's swords and accosted her, sir?" Corvo inquired. Before the innkeeper could speak, he quickly added, "I can tell when people are lying, and I have methods of extracting the truth, so it'd be best if you were honest."