Performers and Thieves

Performers and Thieves

This is for Forrgotenrose and Mith-Ces-Moi to Rp!
Rose with – Iapto, Alan, Ethan and Mack (Alan, Ethan and Mack are random men generated for this Rp and not proper characters) Maybe Marcus if we get that far.
Mo with - Ruanisana Stellamaris Gwendoline Deii Tudernax, Doyle, Wood and Twirn. (Also random) Maybe Dolores and Jaron if we get that far.
Let begin! o3o

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The group of men strolled down the dusty path, the cool crisp autumn air showing the cloud of breath in front of their faces. Tall autumn leaved trees flanked the road like sentries guarding their charge, despite this, the road was free of leaves, and no strong wind had knocked them from their perch. The men did not seemed too concerned about being quiet, their heavy boots thumping against the dry road as they walked. They were armed, and clearly prepared for an attack of any kind, most likely from Shinlai. One of them was boasting a Shinlai tooth hanging from a cord round his neck.

“Hey Alan.” One of them called to the Shinlai tooth man. “D’ya hear about what happened to Ethan the other night?” He asked with a crooked grin.

“Aye! Shad’up, Mack!” The one called Ethan protested, punching Mack on the shoulder. Instantly Mack punched him on the arm.

“Don’t choo punch me!” He snarled. “Ain’t my fault dat hore ran off with ‘alf your money.” He spat, receiving an angry growl from Ethan.

“Cut it out.” Alan said, looking calm. Or more uncaring. Instantly Mack and Ethan shut up and stopped glaring at each other. Alan paused for a moment. “Much better, now I can hear myself think.” He said, shooting a glare towards the pair.

The rounded a corner, and Alan narrowed his eyes. Something on the road up ahead had caught his attention. Ignoring the pair who had started shooting glares at each other, he turned to another member of the group. “Hey Doyle, what do you make of that?” He asked, jerking his chin towards the figure on the road up ahead. To him, it looked like a cloaked woman by herself, but he was smart enough as to check with another before jumping to conclusions. He raised an eyebrow at Doyle almost as though saying.

‘Shall we have some fun?’

It didn’t take long for him to subconsciously lengthen his stride...

((It kept censoring W.h.o.r.e so I type hore now c: ))

The fallen leaves never ceased to amaze her, showing up in unexpected patterns of yellow, red and brown. Every few steps she would kick them up high, just to enjoy the elegance with which they made their way back down. It was chilly, and she had covered herself with quite a few layers of clothe. Her hair was pulled back in a tight braid and covered by the hood of her cloak. If not observed too closely, she could pass for a young man. This wasn't just for fun: living on the streets gave you some experience in surviving.

Behind her, Ruan heard a faint thumping sound. At least four pairs of boots were coming closer, clearly not hiding but out in the open and on the path. She didn't turn to look, not wanting to bring attention to herself. A quick scan of the landscape in front of her learnt that there was probably no human life close whatsoever, let alone a friendly Shinlai. Her hand slid towards her set of knives.

~~

“Hey Doyle, what do you make of that?” Alan's voice woke him from his thinking and made him focus on the small figure before them. It appeared to be a lonely traveler. A smirk crept over his handsome face and with a studied and conscious gesture he tucked his blonde hair behind his ear. "Shall we have some fun?" his brother said, and he agreed by catching up with him and slapping his shoulder.

"What you think Alan, woman or young man? Fighter or easy target?" Just as he uttered the words, the figure kicked up some leaves. Doyle turned his head towards his brother, raising an eyebrow. "Or freakishly long boy." Behind them, the other four men were back to their bickering, Wood picking one side and Twirn the other.

Doyle snapped his head around, glaring them down. "If you goatbrains don't have anything useful to contribute, at least shut your filthy mouths."

A silence came over the group again, only disturbed by Twirn who muttered: "I say yous a fool for not goin after him, just sayn."

“What you think Alan, woman or young man? Fighter or easy target? Or freakishly long boy.” Doyle said, raising an eyebrow at him. Alana surprised a smirk, eyes on the ‘long boy’, he studied the way they moved, having kicked up leaves they seemed to become aware of their actions.

“Strikes me... Someone’s keeping a low profile.” He said slowly to his brother. He heard the loud thunk of boot catching up with him.

“Wad is it?” Mack’s voice asked, seconds later he caught sight of where they were looking. “Ohh I see.” He was distracted as Ethan swiped for him, blocking the blow easily. “Cut i’ out! Dey seen sunthin’!” He said, keeping his voice low. Instantly Ethan also fell silent and followed Alan and Doyle’s movements. It was almost as though they had been trained to shut up when the two ‘leaders’ had seen something.

Alan had ignored everything they had said and done, a plan forming in his head. He looked to Doyle again. Almost as though every thought and idea was to be shared and compared to his brother’s thoughts. He spoke quietly so only his brother could hear. “Keep it cool. Find out what they are. Then act.” He offered. If it was a young man, then not only would it be awkward, but they would be more of a threat. Rather than a woman by herself, he’d ran into them before, and while defensive, not a major threat. Not to him at least.


((AHH why'd you call them brothers? Now I want to make them real characters XD ))

They were now so close that she could hear the low murmur of their voices. Men. Why did they need to be men? Her hand was clenched over a dozen knives, but she didn't want to go hitting random strangers. A shudder rippled through her and somehow she knew these men weren't just out for small talk.

~~

The ignorant goatbrains had caught up with the scenery as well, their jabbering uninteresting as usual. “Keep it cool. Find out what they are. Then act,” Alan dropped in a casual tone, but Doyle knew the subtleties of his brothers voice and immediately thought on. "See if they up for small talking, hmm?" he mused, looking for his brothers approval on his turn. He hoped it was a woman. To whatever would cast them into hell after death, he really needed some fun. He quickened his pace some more.

The four men behind them followed their pace, now all serious and on the task. They knew how things usually went: either Doyle or Alan sought out a target and they would do the talking. Then the 'goatbrains' came along for the intimidating and then fun and profit. Twirn was quickly counting out how much Mack was in his debt. Maybe robbing this person would provide them with enough gold to pay for a proper night drinking.

(OHHOHOO. Also, GAH, you so good at this and I am just meh)

"See if they up for small talking, hmm?" Doyle said. Alan nodded silently, they weren’t far from the figure now... Anymore talking would give them away. He stared moving forwards, leaving the group behind a little, hands in his pockets and a faint smile on his face, he quickly tucked the Shinlai tooth into his shirt, before shoving his hand back in his pocket. Those Shinlai lovin’ hippies were everywhere these days. And if they caught sight of the tooth, and reacted badly...

Ethan and Mack, took up their usual act of not caring about what was going on, looking around and taking in the scenery, but all the while keeping note of what was happening. They could easily act the dumb and stupid, mainly because they were. But none the less, they knew when to shut up.

“Afternoon.” Alan said, his voice smooth and inviting, as he drew along side, making sure to walk a little over arms length away. Just in case. Keeping his poise natural he managed to sneak a brief glance at what was under the hood. He caught a brief glimpse of a young face, with dark hair and eyes, but defiantly female. He had looked quick enough so not to have been staring.

“A little late in the year to be out alone, miss. Anywhere you heading?” He said, looking around at the trees and scuffing his feet in the leaves. He shot a glance over his shoulder, a faint smirk directed to Doyle.

Party time.


((Loool, maybe I just like playing the big scary guy ;D ))

Suddenly, the murmuring behind her cut off and one pair of feet sped up to match her pace. When the man, Ruan was a hundred percent sure it was a man now, had caught up with her he slowed down, shoothing a glance at her face and dipping his head in greeting. "Afternoon." His voice was low and full and when she looked back at him she saw he was extraordinarily handsome as well. Hmm. Ruan nodded back in acknowledgement and looked straight again.

"A little late in the year to be out alone, miss. Anywhere you heading?" Ruan stifled a sigh as she pulled off her hood. Seeing that her manly clothing hadn't fooled him at all, she might as well make sure nothing was blocking her sight. Her long braid escaped from it's wrapped position and dropped down her back where it hang swinging lightly. The larger, copper earrings she wore caught the sun and cast tiny specks of light. Short as she was, Ruan had to look up at the stranger to meet his eyes.

"The same could be said of you sir. Although I wouldn't say you are alone. As to where I am heading, I am quite sure that this road leads to only one city of significance," Ruan said in a pleasant tone. A friendly smile spread across her face, but at the same time her hands were twitching under her cloak. Why in Daila's name was it socially unacceptable to incapacitate random strangers? The man seemed nice enough, but as he looked back with a smirk at the corners of his mouth she looked with him. Six. They could not be up to anything good.

"Are those your companions?" Ruan asked with just the right mixture of innocence and friendlynes. "Why don't they come over here?" she added with an inviting gesture. Here, where I have them in my sight, she thought.

Alan's faint smile told him what he needed to know. The woman seemed to be casually chatting back. Doyle tried to find out what exactly would be the best approach. The woman was quite tiny so she probably wouldn't put off that much of a fight. He could see something glistening in her ears too. Gold? Up to Alan to find out.

The woman now followed Alan's gaze, turning her face so that he could see it. High cheekbones and a toned skin with dark eyes, almost black. Behind his back he heard someone, probably Wood, Doyle thought with irritation, whistle in appreciation. A glare over his shoulder was enough to silence whoever it had been, but he couldn't really disagree. Even if she didn't have anything worth anything, this should still be fun.

He saw Alan look again and the woman wave. Immediately he slapped Ethan on the back and blabbered out some random words to give the illussion of a conversation. Twirn and Wood burst out in laughter and the whole group caught up pace with the two walking in front of them.

Doyle locked eyes with Alan.

Party time.

"The same could be said of you sir. Although I wouldn't say you are alone. As to where I am heading, I am quite sure that this road leads to only one city of significance," she said, dropping her hood back. "Are those your companions?" Alan’s grin widened, she was quite the looker, he heard a whistle from one of the guys and glanced in time to see Doyle whack Ethan on the back and talk to him. Ethan looked pained for a brief moment before rambling back.

“Eh,” he said with a casual shrug. “The blond guy’s my brother, the others are just loners and strays that are tagging along.” He replied, with a suitably uninterested tone. He twisted to face her, walking sideways with surprising skill. “Alan.” He said, holding out one hand to her.

The group was catching up with them, and he was setting an example for the dimwits of how to act. Ethan and Mack nodded to her and introduced themselves, before going back to their previous argument. Only interrupted by Mack frantically telling Twirn he didn’t owe him any money. Nope. None at all.

Alan looked back to the lady, eyes hardly stopping on Doyle, but defiantly making brief eye contact. “What’s your name lass?” He asked, still smiling charmingly.

To Ruan, the whistling had gone unnoticed, drowned by the rustling of the leaves. “Eh. The blond guy’s my brother, the others are just loners and strays that are tagging along,” her companion said in an uninterested tone and with a shrug. He twisted his body and offered his hand. "Alan." Laughing at his crab walk, Ruan took and shook it. The rest of the group had joined them now. The four tugs were bickering over something, money, most likely and stopped only long enough to introduce themselves as Mack, Ethan, Wood and Twirn. Ruan shot them a sideways glance. Just tagging along huh? My feet may fall of if they're not organized in some way.

For now the four men weren't nearly as interesting as Alan and his brother though. "Doyle," the second man introduced himself, his eyes trailing down her neck before snapping up at her face again. Ruan narrowed her eyes ever so slightly. She could easily see the resemblance between the two men now. Both had very attractive features and shaggy hair. They couldn't be far apart in age either. And, she had to give them that, they were playing the charming part very well. “What’s your name lass?” Alan asked her in a pleasant tone. Ruan still didn't have a clue as what exactly they were up to, but for now acting naive was the safest bet.

Her clothes would have made a reverence look very odd, so Ruan just smiled. "My name is Sana, pleased to meet you."

~~

Doyle held out his hand as well and inspected her earrings as she shook it. Drats. Not golden. Oh well, there was enough to enjoy still, he thought as he tried to imagine what she looked like under all those layers. Such a pity her neck was hidden behind a broad scarf. As Alan caught his eye, Doyle raised his eyebrow just a tiny bit.

"My name is Sana, pleased to meet you," the girl said. Her teeth were straight and white against her dark skin, glistening in the sun. "That's a nice name girl! Where are you from?"

Every so often, one of the tugs would check for signal from one of their leaders. In between, their bickering went on.

(Sorry for deciding what they look like! If you had a different idea I'll edit this <3)

She seemed to be amused by his sideways walking. And while not used to being laughed at, he did smile and continue it a little longer than needed. If it made her lower her guard he’d put up with it. "My name is Sana, pleased to meet you." She replied with a smile.

He nodded to her, still maintaining his charm as Doyle took over with the questions for a moment. "That's a nice name girl! Where are you from?" His brother enquired. Alan fell into step along side her. Him on one side, Doyle on the other. The other four behind them, but not so close as to cause alarm.

He shot a glance over his shoulder, half wishing they would be quite, half glad they were keeping the act up. Their voices got on his nerves. Trying not to frown he rubbed his head, a little. “Let’s try not to badger her. I’m sure Sana has been walking for a long time and must be tiered.” He said, with a friendly smile.

He wasn’t actually putting his brother down. But if she had been walking for quite a while, and they kept asking questions, she may start to wilt a little. The air was cool, but it could get hot walking with as many layers as she had... And if she did start to get tiered, she'd put up less of a fight.

The two brothers had fallen into step next to her, towering over the five foot she was long. Ruan couldn't help but compare them to watchtowers, ready to release a rain of arrows on her head. The thought made her stomach quease and she was glad as Alan cut Doyle off. "Let’s try not to badger her. I’m sure Sana has been walking for a long time and must be tired," he said, smiling friendly.

Ruan returned the smile, but she also noticed the crease that was formed between his brows. In truth, she wasn't tired at all. It was only a few hours past noon and hell, she'd walked longer than this. The autumn wind was cool against her skin and sometimes a violent gust would tug at her hair and blow the strands in her face. She brushed them away impatiently before answering his question. "Thank you, but I am fine." Just as she said that, an extremely violent wind blew past them.

~~

Doyle didn't press on, trying to follow his brothers thinking. His conclusion was the same. The small woman smiled at Alan and he couldn't disagree with her. She didn't look flustered or tired at all, even though she must have been walking quite a long way already. Right at that moment, a gust of wind blew up her cloak and for a few seconds he could see two rows of knives hanging from her belt, as well as some pouches, but those weren't interesting anyways. Then Sana pulled her cloak back, laughing and elegantly catching a leaf blowing past.

Had he seen that right? This tiny, seemingly defenseless and naive girl was carrying knives around? Doyle tried to catch his brothers eyes. This was an... interesting development. A smile tucked at the corners of his mouth.

"Thank you, but I am fine." She said, tucking her hair behind her ear. A strong gust of wind swept past, spinning her cloak about, and kicking up leaves. Alan was too busy squinting against the wind to see the knives. But when he could see again, he looked to Doyle.

His brothers expression had changed. Not noticeably, but after living with his brother for nearly 30 odd years. He knew when something was up. Something had changed about their catch. A smile was tugging at Doyle’s mouth, but he seemed either slightly confused.

It all took mere seconds for Alan to register and process this. He looked down to ‘Sana’ his smile had lessened slightly, but it was still friendly and inviting, just less over the top, he clasped his hands behind his back, getting ready to signal the guys. “Do you do anything interesting?” He asked, silently motioning to Mack to get closer and ready to grab her. “I know that Twain is a bit of a gambler.” He said, motioning to Twain, the opposite direction of Mack.

“But Mack’s a professional trapper.” He said.

Mack, who had managed to get pretty close, lunged forwards and grabbed her around the waist. Pinning her arms to her sides, and hoisting the slight woman into the air. Mack was a big guy, and Raun was easily two foot off the air. Ethan gave a laugh and a whoop, glad that something had finally happened, he and the others promptly moved so they were in a circle around her and Mack. Alan maintained the same smile and moved so he was stood in front of her.

“Like I said.” He said calmly, hands on his hips. “A professional.”

It was almost unnoticable, but living amongst dangerous people for the greatest part of her life had provided Ruan with some kind of a sixth sense. She could feel it pricking in her neck, the sudden threat that hung in the air. Alan was still smiling, but it didn't reach his eyes anymore. Doyle was looking confused. What had happened? Ruan couldn't understand the sudden change, but she wasn't going to let them catch her off guard. Once more she hid her hands in her cloak, sliding three knives out of their hold.

"Do you do anything interesting?" Alan asked, folding his hands behind his back. Ruan didn't answer and eyed him cautiously instead. She could almost feel the coldness that was piercing through his charm. Doyle was smirking at something now and he seemed to know exactly where his brother was going. "I know that Twirn is a bit of a gambler," Adam continued on in the same strange tone, the smile getting creepier and creepier.

Where was he going with this? And what was with the brother-understanding. Ruan gave another cautious nodd and a hmm that could mean anything. "But Mack’s a professional trapper."
All alarm bells in her head set off screaming and she wanted to jump forward, but suddenly someone threw his arms around her and hoisted her up in the air. There was enough force behind the assault to knock the breath out of her lungs and for a few seconds she just hung there gasping, desperately holding on to the knife.


"Like I said," Alan spoke. "A professional."

~~

Like a fish caught in a net and flopped on the land, 'Sana' hang in the air, gasping and coughing. Doyle couldn't help but admire her, the big, black eyes opening in shock and then quickly narrowing in anger. They had formed a circle around her, everyone taking his place like they had done times and times before.

Let the party begin.

"Put me down," the girl said. He had to give her, she didn't sound panicked or even surprised. It was all anger and demand, weakened because she was appearently still gasping for air. Doyle's smile mimicked that of his brother as he joined him. "Easy there mack, we wouldn't want such a beautiful lady to be uncomfortable," he said, laughing at the furious look that crossed the girls face.

"I said," the girl almost spat. "Put. Me. Down!" The onliest thing that earned her was a round of laughs. Another gust of wind blew, moving her scarf and revealing a necklace resting on bare skin. From the corners of his eyes, Doyle saw Wood nudge Ethan, an appreciating look on his face. Irritation rose in him but Doyle shoved it aside for now and approached the dangling girl. "Well well lady, what you have here?" he said, tracing around the jewel that hung from a leather cord.

He was interested that she didn’t scream. They normally screamed. He frowned at her, she was too calm for his liking. "Put me down," She said.

"Easy there Mack, we wouldn't want such a beautiful lady to be uncomfortable," Doyle said with a laugh.

"I said, put. Me. Down!" She spat at them. The wind blew, flinging her scarf away, Alan snatched it out the air with easy, and wrapped it around his hand. Before seeing the gem. Doyle moved forwards clearing noticing said gem. But Alan stayed where he was.

"Well well lady, what you have here?" Doyle moved forwards clearing noticing said gem. But Alan stayed where he was.

“Not much of a fighter, are you?” Alan said. “Disappointing. Then again, the woman never really do...” He taunted, toying with her scarf, he lent forwards a little. “What else you got hidden under that cloak?” He asked with a nasty looking grin. There was a bark of laughter from Ethan, and Mack grinned over Sana’s shoulder.

The thugs knew their place and remained mostly silent, allowing the two leaders to play with their food. Ruan shot Doyle a disgusted look, but it was Alan who caught her attention. Almost playful, he caught her scarf and wrapped it around his hand.

Not much of a fighter, are you?" the man said. [b]"Disappointing. Then again, the woman never really do..." Her face flushed with anger as he tauntingly pulled her scarf. Put me down and I'll show you just how much of a fight I can give you! she thought, but instead she blew a strand of hair out of her face and shot him a dark look. "Like you are so brave, hah! Yeah, let's pick on a lonely traveller because that might actually be a challenge. Oh hey, it's a girl, well, let's do everything to prevent ourselves from harm. How do you expect me to fight when a thug twice my size has his filthy arms around me, you goatbrain!"

~~

Ouch! The woman had a sharp tongue! Doyle closed his fingers around the gem and gave a hard tug so the cord snapped. Then he took a few steps back to see Alans reaction. His brother leaned a little forward, smiling deviously. "What else you got hidden under that cloak?" For the first time, concern crossed Sana's eyes. Doyle wriggled his eyebrows at his brother. It seemed that they had hit a sensitive point.

~~

"What else you got hidden under that cloak?" It took all her efforts not to show her shock. Ruan didn't know why she hadn't seen it coming, but for the first time she felt truly afraid. "Don't you dare..." she hissed, trying to wriggle free an arm.

"Like you are so brave, hah! Yeah, let's pick on a lonely traveller because that might actually be a challenge. Oh hey, it's a girl, well, let's do everything to prevent ourselves from harm. How do you expect me to fight when a tug twice my size has his filthy arms around me, you goatbrain!" She ranted at them.

Alan rolled his eyes, “Yeah pretty much, that’s how we do things. Think of us like a pack of wolves. A team not dumb enough to wonder around alone. Unlike some.” He replied calmly. Doyle yanked the gem from her neck before moving away slightly.

"Don't you dare..." She hissed, squirming around. Mack was having no trouble hanging onto her though.

“Ohh touchy.” Alan mocked. “Speaking of which, Ethan go ahead.” He directed, before inspecting the gem Doyle was hanging onto.

Ethan snickered and moved forwards, swiftly unclasping her cloak and yanking it away, tossing it towards Wood. “Interesting outfit.” He remarked with a laugh, seeing her clothing.

"Yeah pretty much, that’s how we do things. Think of us like a pack of wolves. A team not dumb enough to wonder around alone. Unlike some," Alan replied, rolling his eyes. Ruan was practically fuming with rage. Pushing away fear was easy enough, but she had a hard time keeping her thoughts clear when she was angry like this. The fact that they had absoluely no reason to be impressed with her raging only infuriated her more.

Count on Alan to get that in one second. "Ohh touchy," the idiot mocked. "Speaking of which, Ethan go ahead." Alarm bells again. "Don't you dare!" she said again, now louder but to no avail. The man called Ethan was on her neck with his filthy fingers and then yanked cloak out of the way in one pull.

~~

Two rows of twelve knives. Several pouches with unknown contents. A small dagger on her hip. Two fasks and a bottle. Coloured lints. A flute. Doyle was amazed by the things Sana had hanging from her belt. By the shocked and at the same time furious expression on her face, Doyle could tell she wasn't particulary pleased to have her weaponry revealed. He smirked at his brother. "Well well well, it seems this kitten had some hidden claws," he snickered. "Tell me beautiful, what were you planning on doing with all this?"

Behind him, Doyle could hear Wood and Twirn exchange suggestive remarks. He couldn't disagree. Despite the formless clothing, he could see her chest and hips press against the fabric. "Aye say, still 'oo mach clothin' on 'er," Wood whispered behind him and he laughed.

"Don't you dare!" She all but yelled at them. The cloak came away and revealed a whole bunch of random items. Alan’s eyebrows shout up at the sight of it all, before changing to a smirk at Wood’s comment.

"Well well well, it seems this kitten had some hidden claws, t ell me beautiful, what were you planning on doing with all this?" Doyle asked, shooting a glance his way, before turning back to her.

He folded his arms and watched patiently, letting Ethan leer at her. Unable to see what they were talking about, Mack had lowered her slightly, peering over her shoulder. He too seemed rather amazed at the things she carried with him, but promptly became distracted by the view down her top. Ethan was reaching forwards to one of the bottles, when Mack’s grip on her slipped.

Finally, Ruan thought when she felt Mack's hold falter ever so slightly. With amazing speed she yanked free an arm and took a knife. Before the men had a change to react, she plunged it into Mack's leg. Immediately, the big man let go of her, roaring out in pain. Ruan landed on her feet as light as a cat. With routined movements, she pulled out more knives, ready to throw them at whoever would try to make a move her way.

"Who can't put up a fight, Alan," she spat at the man. Ruan was well aware that her situation hadn't changed that much in her favor. She was still surrounded by five men almost twice her size who were now entirely letting go of whatever illusion of playfullnes was left. She crouched, bracing herself for whatever unexpected movement might take place. Her eyes flitted from left to right, looking for a way out.

~~

One moment they had had her, the next Mack was on the ground with a huge cut across the inside of his thigh. That's a few inches from being a girl, he thought briefly, but then he focused on the girl again. He could see realisation in her eyes. Even with her pretty little knives, she wouldn't stand a chance against either of them. He bumped his elbow into Alan's. "I say the kitten needs a lesson. Why don't we teach her how to behave?"

Wood and Twirn stepped forward, the circle grew closer.

"Who can't put up a fight, Alan." The girl spat at him. He stared calmly back at her. It was Mack’s own fault for not keeping grip of her. Ethan seemed shocked at the fall of his friend but made no move to help him. After all, they were a group where they’d care for themselves.

"I say the kitten needs a lesson. Why don't we teach her how to behave?" Doyle said, giving him a slight nudge. He gave a curt nod, and drew his sword.

One down five to go. And not all of them were going to make the same mistake as the not still Mack. Without waiting for an order, Ethan lunged for her, drawing his knife and slashing wildly at her. “Idiot!” Barked Alan. They needed to work together, not lunge about wildly. It didn’t stop Ethan from slicing for her arm though. He was intending to toy with her, then cripple her.

~~

A roar of pain jerked her from her sleep, with a slight yelp, flail and a short fall. Iapto found herself on her feet under the tree she had fallen asleep in. Momentarily distracted, she checked herself over and tried to remember what had woken her. And why she was in a tree. She put her hands on her hips and looked around herself with a frown. She couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

There was a shout of ‘Idiot!’ from the direction of the road. Immediately she drew her knives and began weaving through the trees, so quietly even Volpe would have had issues hearing her. While she never normally bothered being quiet, she knew when to be stealthy. Now was a good example.

His untouched behaviour made Ruan want to ram a knife through his eye, cut him up and serve him as fresh pork at Jaron's inn. Before she could bring this plan into practice, the man called Ethan yelled and lunged at her. "Idiot!" Alan barked. Idiot, Ruan thought. With easy grace she ducked under his outstretched arm, shifted the knives in her hand so they were justting out between her fingers like claws and punched him in the throat. The guy made a choking sound, but Ruan didn't have time for pity. She kicked him in the chest hard, sending him flying a few feet back.

~~

Wood and Twirn immediately filled the gap Ethan had left, the first with brows knitted in concern, the second with a murderous expression on his face. Doyle had to admit that he was impressed. He glanced sideways at his brothers calm face. Alan always was one for not getting caught in the moment. Following his example, Doyle drew his sword as well. He casually let it swing back and forth as he circled the girl.

He could see her dark eyes narrow as she saw through his plan, but there was no way she could look at the both of them at the same time. Over her head, his eyes fixed on Alan's. Then he lunged forward for the first strike.

Iapto stopped on the edge of the tree line and watched what was going on with interest. Five men were surrounding, a young woman had just punched a man in the throat, holding knives between her knuckles, and then kicked him in the chest. Almost flinging him into one of the other men. She raised her eyebrows impressed, especially after noticing a second body laying on the floor, a large pool of blood surrounding him.

Then she paid a little more attention to the girl fighting them, it looked as though her cloak and scarf had been forcibly removed by the men. But she recognised her, she had met her ages ago on the beach, shortly before being trapped by a rock fall, and spending ‘quality time’ with Echo. She also had a broken arm and couldn’t remember much else. She scowled, watching as one large man circled around behind Ruan, swinging his sword back and forth. Well that was just low.

Without hesitation, she legged it forwards, circling slightly so she came up behind the man, the others too focused on Ruan. And grabbed his shoulder. She spun him around to see his, rather handsome, face. “Good afternoon!” She said cheerfully. Before punching him square on the nose, followed closely by a knee to the groin. “Hope I’m not interrupting anything!” She continued cheerfully, driving an elbow down on the back of Doyle’s neck. “It’s only my friend looked like she’d like a hand!” She finished, promptly hauling Doyle away, and standing back to back with Ruan.

~~

Alan facepalmed as Ethan went down. He should have waited for an order. But it didn’t take long for Twirn and Wood to move in, one Ethan body had been flung past him that was.

“Two down, four to go.” He said calmly, moving forwards and twirling his sword in one hand, he made a couple of threatening moves, to keep her attention from Doyle. A grin spreading across his face. It was rather fun toying with her. A brief flash of dark red distracted him, and he lost his attention from ‘Sana’, and looked past her and his brother. In time to see a scared up woman punch his brother in the face.

Well that was unexpected.

She was losing and she knew it. Bringing two men down wasn't a small feat, but there was four more and for what Ruan could see they were both pissed off and in good health. Well crap. The biggest problem were Doyle and Alan. The two others she could take, she was sure of it. Brutal force, not tactics. But Alan and Doyle...

Very annoyingly, they were attacking from two sides and while Ruan could avoid most slashes, she was getting tired. If only she could come close enough to either of them to actually make physical contact. In her head she raked through the possibilities. Doyle could do with a whack on the head, but Alan would have to suffer much more... It almost made her smile.
Sadly enough, Alan seemed to be quite a skilled fighter and he wasn't giving her any room. In fact, both him and his brother were pressing closer still. Her situation became more precarious by the second.

Just as Ruan thought she might as well run straight up to one of the thugs, a cheerfull voice interrupted. The woman's "Good afternoon!" was ironically accompined by a crunching sound. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything! It's only my friend looked like she'd like a hand!" Ruan looked over her shoulder, her mouth dropping in aw. "Iapto? What the?" Behind Iapto, Doyle went down almost gracefully, landing with his head in a pile of leaves.

For a second, all was silent. Then Twirn and Wood let out roars of pure anger. They came at the two women in almost synchronized rage. Before she knew, Ruan felt Iapto's back pressing against her. "You know, if I wasn't with Tom, I'd marry you." Then she flung a knife in Wood's eye.

About time.

"Iapto? What the?" Ruan managed, as Iapto watch Doyle face plant. "You know, if I wasn't with Tom, I'd marry you." She said, flinging a knife into one guy’s eye.

“If I wasn’t with Echo, then I’d be happy too. Just tell me who Tom is first.” She replied calmly. She spun on her heel, and lunged, driving both her knives into Twirns chest. She twisted the knives, and there was a loud crack, almost over shadowed by Twirns scream of pain, before gurgling and dropping into a heap.

“Oh. Well that was easy.” She said, sounding a little upset the fun was nearly over. She looked up at the blond man. He was watching them with a calm expression, the sword held by his side, not a hint of worry or anger on his face.

~~

Alan just watched them, already wondering about hauling a new gang together. Just better, these ones had been twits. He sighed and rested his sword on his shoulder. “Are you quite finished gossiping?” He asked with a snap. He was stalling slightly, waiting for Doyle to get back to his feet, rather than the ungraceful face plant he had done.

The woman with the scar on her face held her arms out, knives gleaming with Twain’s blood. “Ready and waiting, honey. Any time now.” She mocked in a sing song voice.

((I forgot to mention, Doyle is more than welcome to stab/hurt Iapto. So long as its not leathal and she can still walk, I'm cool with it c: ))

"If I wasn’t with Echo, then I’d be happy too. Just tell me who Tom is first," Iapto replied. Then a crack and an agonized sound and Iapto again. "Oh. Well that was easy." Ruan smiled at the disappointment in her voice. "Relax Iapto, I'm quite sure we're not done here."

"Are you quite finished gossiping?" Alan asked in a bored manner. Oh, how Ruan would love to plant a knife in his stomach. Sadly enough, that leather vest he was wearing looked quite sturdy. "Ready and waiting, honey. Any time now," Iapto mocked right back at him. Oh yes, this was definetely an improvement, Ruan thought. She had to give Alan, having someone on your side did miracles.

"The brave robber is just awaiting his brother to rise from the piles of leaveness. Because wolfs make elegant encounters with the ground like that," Ruan taunted. Meanwhile, she was quickly scanning his clothing. Not a chance of piercing that vest with a knife, nor would they make any lingering impressions on his boots or pants. Well, I'd hate to scar your handsome face, she thought and laughed.

~~

It took a few moments for Doyle to realise what had happened. One second they had had the utmost upper hand and having fun toying this girl. The next, he had been beaten up and the world had ended in darkness. He groaned as jabs of pain shot from his neck down his spine. Then he remembered a flash of dark red and a mocking voice.

Doyle's head snapped up (ow!) and his eyes met the staring gaze of a very dead Twirn. Oh well. With a groan, he scrambled to his feet and picked up his sword. It took a few blinks to clear his vision, but then he could see the whole situation. Only Alan still standing, faced by two women. Oh well. This could still be fun.

A vicious smile spread across his face as his eyes locked with Alan's. "It seems the game has just been taken up a notch."

"Relax Iapto, I'm quite sure we're not done here." Ruan replied, Iapto grinned and twirled one of her knives in her hand. Well, she called them knives, but almost being a foot long, they weren’t quite swords either. "The brave robber is just awaiting his brother to rise from the piles of leaveness. Because wolfs make elegant encounters with the ground like that," Ruan taunted.

Iapto gave a bark of laughter, she was going to enjoy this. Maybe a little too much, but none the less, she’d make sure to make every move count. There was a groan and a scrabble from behind her. Turning on the spot, Iapto made brief eye contact with Ruan, the smile gone from her face, replaced with a cold dead stare, almost as though she was blind in both eyes. "It seems the game has just been taken up a notch." The blond beaten man said, struggling to his feet and looking to his brother.

“Well then, let us play.” Iapto said, moving away from Ruan and starting to circle Doyle, both knives held loosely and a seemingly carefree way of moving.

~~

Alan watched, annoyance starting to bubble within him. This ‘Sana’ was a heck of a lot more confident now here friend ‘Iapto’ was here. He ignored Sana’s mocking words and waited for his bother to get to his feet. All the while conscious of Sana checking him for weakness’s. Good luck with that. He thought bitterly, he knew to dress appropriately, and leather padded clothes were the best option next to full metal.

He never liked that metal stuff anyway. He watched as Iapto moved away circling his brother, and he was left facing Sana. A one on one fight then. Fair enough. He spun his sword once, before dropping the mask of calm. A look of utmost fury took over his face, changing him from handsome to monster in a split second. And he lunged for Sana with a loud snarl.