The Alleyway

Posted: Nov 13th 2006 - Nov 18th 2006

Posters: Qlmmb2086, marjorievonnordeck, Camalot777, Girlbrainiac, lightpaladin, Himura-Dumbledore and kirbycrosby06

Associated threads: The Tavern

"Never I dull moment, is there?" Merlin......er.... .....Dr. Emrys said. "Why are we hanging out here on a cold night such as this? Let's hed back inside and get some free drinks (on my expence)."

Rem shook his head. "Not yet. The knight and I have business to attend to first. No doubt we will meet you shortly." He turned towards Metis. "Your page... what happened to him?"

Lana peeked at the three of them from around the corner, trying to figure out the best way past them without catching their notice. She needed to head down that alley to get home and the last thing she wanted was for Rem to see her. He might think she was spying on him.

Quickly she went through a mental map of the city, trying to figure out a different route. None came to her.

'You'll just have to risk it,' she told herself. Taking a deep breath she stepped out into the alleyway.

"My Page.." Metis began as he shifted to sit more comfortably on the ground. All sense of pride hand now left him as he kept his gaze fixed on his feet, one hand straying to the chain around his neck as he though of what exactly to say.

"She was killed by a band of slavers we were tracking threw the Dim-wood," he nearly sobbed his words, now nearly over come by the combination of grief he felt over her death and guilt he felt about the happening in the bar, and the general loosening of all of his defenses his intoxicated state lent him to.

“She was a child,” his voice was still shacky, but he felt he owed this man at least a little explanation, “ten... So full of light, she was so promising...” he was babbling, ‘This is not what he asked you,’ Metis berated himself, but then stilled a moment.

He turned his gaze toward the direction he knew the door to the was when he heard light footsteps nearing them in the darkness.

"She?" Rem caught his voice. The footfalls from the tavern caught his attention only shortly before he continued. "And you saw her die yourself?" A more important question occurred to him then. "The bandits... of what race were they?"

The knight had noticed her approach.

'Don't look at them. Just keep walking,' she thought.

Then she tripped over something in her blind spot and fell in the dirt of the alley with a crash.

"Curse it!" she yelled.

Angel turned at the door to see Lana standing by an alleyway. Then, he heard not the voices inside the tavern, but rather, in the alleyway that she was standing by. Though not as keen as a pure elf's ears, his ears determined that the voices were those of Rem, Dr. Emrys, and a third he could only distinguish as the knight's. He then turned back to the tavern and jumped silently onto its roof like a cat. He then crouched down and peeked over the alley to find the three of them squabbling amongst themselves. Angel then turned his gaze towards Lana as she was trying to make it by unnoticed, but failed miserably as she tripped on her blind spot. He then saw Rem's gaze fixed on her.

'Tsk, tsk,' he thought to himself as he waited to see what unfolded.

The cold steel of a blade gently pressed onto the back of Lana's neck. "Such language for a lady," Rem commented. "In case you haven't noticed, my patience is a bit thin tonight. What are you doing?"

"Yes, she," Metis answered, "Lestreena."

The second question struck him as odd... now that he thought about it again, he couldn't prove she was dead, "I saw her fall... a sword threw the breast, but they took her body and our horses." Metis' thinking faltered, he had not considered that she might be alive still until this moment, 'But surly,' he thought, 'with the amount of blood she'd lost...'

"I'm not sure," Metis continued. ((Sorry, I haven't gotten this far into my story yet - so please forgive the vagueness on the description of the bandits.)) "They were strange, of a vaguely humanoid race... A peoples I've never encountered before."

Rem's attention broke from Lana at the knight's words. "There's a chance she's alive? Slavers, you called them. They would not allow so young a creature an early death. You said they were humanoids, but I think you meant by that they were not human. How large are they? Can you recall the shape of their footprints?"

"I'm trying to walk home," came Lana's slightly muffled reply. She lay perfectly still, hoping that Rem's patience wouldn't finally wear out.

'That would be ironic. All these years I've been worried about the Thieves' Guild and I get killed by a guy I only met today,' she thought, wryly.

Metis resisted his reflex to jump to his feet deciding that Rem likely had things well undercontroll. Insted he let his gaze drift to their boots.

'Lady, right,' Metis thought as he sat there in silence not moving.

'Ho boy,' Angel thought as he saw Rem's blade on Lana's neck. He couldn't just stand by and just let something meaningless happen to her. He stood and made his way to the corner of the roof, where he had a better view of Rem right beneath him. Then, behind his back, he allowed an orb of warm, pure light to form in his hand. He then clenched the orb, allowing it to lengthen into a magic beam the size and shape of a longsword. He then leaped off the roof, landing without a sound right behind Rem. He then held his blade of light's edge against the front of Rem's neck.

"Now, is that any way to treat a lady?" he spoke. "Tch tch tch. You should learn your manners."

Rem froze in his place, considering his next move. "Convenient," he commented dryly. "Your route home passes through a dark alley where we just happen to be speaking, with an assassin closely in tow. When you told me you lost your eye for your 'investigations,' I assumed you'd have learned from that experience."

Slowly he lifted the sword from Lana's neck and held it at arm's length to his right, allowing the blade to dangle downwards on two fingers.

((Oh, you're really going to test my ability to make things up on the fly now aren't you...))

"No, certainly not human," Metis answered, "and quite large,” he thought for a moment... ‘Damn all that ale has made my memory fuzzy!’

“They stood at least a head taller than I,” he answered at last, “and their foot prints... I can not recall, no... all the damned ale has blasted my brains. But I could probably recognize them if I saw them again. I did track them on foot for three months around and threw the woods after... that incident.”

Metis looked toward Angle and then back to his boots. 'Could this night get any worst?' he thought to himself dryly.

'I gave my word not to look him in the face, and now I can't offer any help without doing so,' he sighed as he reached his decsition. Metis stood, but keept his gaze directed at the boots of all three persons now standing before him.

Lana got up, dusting off her clothes.

"THANK YOU," she said to Angel, "but now I really must be getting home. Thank you for the drink and your fine company. I hope to meet you again sometime."

'Preferably someplace more quiet,' she added silently.

With that she turned and continued walking down the alley as quickly as she possibly could.

Rem watched Lana retreat into the night. "There goes my explanation," he thought.

"What is with you people?" he asked aloud. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm the one dragging suicidal knights away from dragons and being spied on by crippled vigilantes. I am not the one who needs a sword to their throat."

Metis felt utterly rediculouse... not to mention useless as he stood there hoping that Rem still had a handle on the situation, as he was not really in any condition for a fight at the moment.

"This assassin does not know war," Rem thought. "In war, one does not talk to one's opponent before dealing a death blow." Ironically, Rem had no knowledge of how to proceed for that very reason. He had never had a blade to his throat. War, he could deal with. Against treachery he had no defense.

But of course, that was why he was here, wasn't it?

"If I may interupt," Metis said quietly, still not sure if he should be opening his mouth or not, "please Angle, would you leave us to our buisness... We have no desire for any more trouble."

'How is it that I always manage to get into these tangles?' he added silently to himself.

By now, any of Rem's soldiers would have already moved, and yet Metis stayed firmly planted. He didn't even look up, Rem realized, he just stared down at the...

"Shervenst noctes," Rem thought. "The oath."

He hesatated. If he released the knight, he might do something stupid in his drunken haze and cause the assasin to panic. Or worse, he could recognize his face. "I deserve this," he thought. "Trapping a knight in a prommise is underhanded to begin with."

"Sir knight," he said. "I release you from your oath. You may look if it suits you." Rem prayed he had judged the knight correctly, and prayed that his assasin would not.

Metis made a little prayer ot Mithesius that he had properly judged Angle's position relative to Rem's by the placement of their feet.

Then he moved quickly, snapping his head up and taking a step and a half around Rem's right and drawing his sword at the same time he knocked Angle's sword away from Rem's neck. Then he froze, holding a defensive position but not advancing.

'Oh, this is all I need to night,' Metis thought to himself, 'please, Lord, don't let this be the end of us... or at least Rem, he seems a more worth man than I.'

As soon as Metis moved, Rem dropped his sword to give him room to come around him. When the blade left his throat he rolled away from the fight, half disappearing into the darkness of the alleyway. While the others held their swords crossed, he crossed his arms to his shoulders and pulled both of his shield’s straps, quick jerks. The shield released from his back.

The bow was un-slung from its quiver before the shield hit the ground. In one motion Rem drew and notched an arrow. He paused for a half second, and then centered his aim on the shadow with the brightest sword, drawing the bowstring tighter.

He released.

((At this point I think it's a good idea to wait on this thread until Lightpaladin has had a chance to respond.))

((Ok, I guess I can wait, lol)

Angel tensed up as soon as he heard the sound of an arrow being shot. In one swift motion, he reached out with impeccable timing and caught the arrow successfuly by the long body when the tip was mere inches from his head. He then cast it aside and reached for the hilt of the light blade. He then pulled out another light blade from the first one. Then, with his first blade, Angel shoved the knight back with enough force to knock him down. Then he lashed out with his other blade directed towards the alley, and as soon as he did, the blade lengthed and undulated much like a snake. When it reached Rem, the light whip wrapped itself around his ankle. Angel gave a hard tug and heard the satisfying "thud" on the ground. Then, light sword in his other hand, he waited for the knight to make a move.

Roger stepped out of the Tavern and looked around. He spied a flash of light from around a corner, a moment later he heard a loud crash. Trusting his instincts he ran into the alleyway, there was Angel standing over Reman. Roger's eyes widened; Angel was holding a sword and a whip, both weapons were made of LIGHT.

"A light mannis" he breathed. He'd underestimated yet another patron, and Lana was nowhere to be found.

Angel's sword wavered slightly, throwing a portion of the alley into light. For a split second Roger spied the knight, sword raised to strike as he fell away from Angel.

"Stop this!" Roger called.

((Eh... Rem's bow is immune to magic. If your sword is constructed purely of light magic, the arrow should just pass through and not be deflected.))

((tisk, tisk... someone did not read your charater info. Guess we have to wait for a new reply from him now?))

((Yet again ))

((Sorry about that. I made some changes to my last post above to suit your needs. Now on with the RP!XD))

Metis reacted quickly as he fell, realizing that Angle was now fockused of Rem he took the oppertunity to swing his sword around at Angle's feet as he fell (before he his the ground).

"Stop this!" the voice of a newcommer rang in his ears.

'Would that I could,' Metis thought as he hit the ground with a thud, roling on his right shoulder to land in a croutching position.

Rem hit the ground hard, but kept a firm grip on the bow nonetheless. Someone from the bar was yelling for them to stop the fight, and he used the distraction as an opportunity to draw his dagger, ripping into the cord of light on his foot with its jagged back edge. The short end of the object writhed momentarily and melted into darkness, freeing his foot.

His sword was still several feet out of reach, so Rem improvised instead. What was left of the whip near him he stabbed through, twisting the cord around the dagger’s hooked cross-guard before burying the blade into the ground.

Metis struck at the attacker’s feet with his sword while rolling to the ground. Rem rose to his knee and notched a pair of arrows to his bowstring, waiting for Metis to force the other to parry once more.

"Trevest kelan," he said gruffly as the arrowheads came to rest against his left hand. "How many blows can you block at once?"

((seeing as Metis heard Rem fall, I had a question... I know Rem is behind Metis, but to witch side - Metis' right or left?))

In one swift movement Metis did the following things: He stood, sidestepping to his left* and (starting with the tip of his sword pointed down - held with both hands for a quick and powerful blow) swung his sword in an arch at Angle from his (Angle's) left* foot to his right* shoulder. This effectivly keeps the blade of Metis sword between his and Angle's body as he moves threw the above said motions.

((Originally Rem was facing Metis down the alleyway when Angel came at him from behind. Metis then moved around Rem's right to attack Angel, meaning he moved towards his own left and the right side of the alleyway (from the street.) If angel is facing Metis, that would put Rem on Angel's left down the alleyway, on Metis's right.

That's it as far as I can figure it out.))

((Ok, I was backwords then... I will edit Metis previous actions.))

((Ok, for the sake of the plot...there isn't any water source around the tavern is there?. Roger can smell water, though i forgot to mention him noticing mezzik smelt like rain. Oh, and he's waiting for Reman to attack Angel)).

((If Rodger can "smell" water... I believe Rem has a water flask on him... If I remember correctly from his charater info. Otherwise, as to the allyway I have no idea, lol.))

((Rem wasn't aiming for Roger, he was aiming for Angel.))

Roger stepped between Rem and his target as the arrows released, deflecting one with his sword. "A final warning: Stop this foolishness," he said coldly.

Rem took a step back and drew another arrow. "Foolishness?" he said. "That man tried to kill me. I'm giving you a chance to stand down. Your sword is heavy. If it moves towards me I have only to let go my hand and we will both die. Try to block it at this range. I have only to pick the places your sword does not cover, be it an eye, a lung, or your throat. You will not move fast enough."

Rem recognized the look in Roger's eyes. For him the look was as familiar as battle itself, but he knew Roger would never know that his own eyes so closely mirrored them. "I will not be taken this way," he whispered, not caring if Roger could hear or not. "Don't make me kill you too."

Then another thought crossed his mind. Only one Arrow had been deflected. Someone would be wearing the other in their flesh.

Nightwoods and Percival had served Roger well against Orcs and the like. He saw his weakness now, his sword swing wasn't fast enough against human opponents. He considered his options; Reman had been drinking while all he'd had was a pint of freshly pressed wine (hardly intoxicating). However the soldier could obviously hold his drink, judging by the effort it took to deflect the arrow...

Arrow? Or arrows? He wasn't sure.

Unbidden, his nostrils were filled with the coppery smell of blood. He'd failed Angel. His anger peaked. "He's hurt, I can't forgive you" he thought, preparing himself for death. Just then; his eyes, finally adjusting to the darkness of the alley, spotted a large barrel behind Reman. Cities rarely had rivers flowing through them so inhabitants put out "water drums" to collect rain water. Hoping it was his lucky day, Roger reached out to the barrel with his mind; it was full, and reasonably clean. Roger glared at his opponent, all the while focusing on gaining control of the water in the barrel.

The barrel exploded as its contents rushed towards Reman.

((I apologise for that, I don't want the fight to end so soon! LOL. Roger's pretty experienced as a mannis for his age, though he's a bit rusty cos he hasn't really used his abilities much in the last two years))

Roger's eyes slowly went from fear to hatred. "He won't stand down," Rem realized now. "If I don't kill him now we will both die." He hesitated, then relaxed his draw hand.

Something cold blasted him from behind, and the shot jerked high and whistled into the darkness. On impulse Rem rolled to avoid the sword as the blast threw him into Roger's shins, tripping the other man. Once on the ground he grasped his shield where it still lay, and held it against the explosion at his back.

For a moment he lay dazed on the ground. The bow could be anywhere; he had let go of it to steady the shield. Gathering his thoughts, he looked around.

His sword was within reach. That would place him near the alley’s entrance, near Metis and the assassin. Desperately he reached for his sword before even starting to stand up.

Roger struggled to get to his feet. The sheer amount of effort that attack had required left him mentally drained, two years without training would do that to a person. He fumbled with Nightwoods as he regained his balance, Reman was a tad slower to get to his feet though he was once more armed with his longsword.

Pushing all thoughts of Angel out of his mind, Roger charged. He weaved from left to right in a drunken manner before flicking his sword's tip upwards. The speed of the manouvre caught Reman by surprise and he narrowly deflected the strike, avoiding being impaled. Roger cursed, his movements had become even more sluggish

Angel felt the sting of the arrow on his shoulder, but he paid it no mind as he released his light sword, the sword dissapating. He then grasped the arrow and yanked it out of his shoulder. Pain surged throughout his entire left arm, and the smell of blood was thick in the air. Angel sucked in a pained breath through his clenched teeth, but surprisingly stood his ground. Then, an orb of light formed in his uninjured arm and he held it up to where the arrow had been. A tingly sensation went through his arm, and just a few seconds later, he raised it from his wound...or what was left of it. A bright red scar was all that remained.

'If there's one thing light magic is famous for," Angel thought, 'it's healing. But still, I shouldn't move it too much.'

"Great. One more scar to adorn my arm," he said as he flung off his white coat, revealing his scarred arms. He then turned to the knight, light sword at the ready.

"Well?" Angel called. "Are you gonna attack or run?"

((errr...I think Angel got hit by the arrow, and doesn't he have Metis to contend with?))

((yeah... should probably reword the last post.))

((All taken care of. I should read these posts more often-.-"))

((Hmmm...It seems Roger was mistaken in assuming Angel was a light Mannis. Anyways, on with the show!))

((just forget about my previous comment, if you already read it... I'm just gonna go with the flow, I guess, lol, because I got a little confused there.))

Metis was not happy whit his odds against Angle, who aparently had some ability to heal himself. He had much underestimaited this mage and he cursed Rodger's intervention. He hadn't wanted to attack Angle at all. Now by his honor he would do what he could to aid Rem in defending himself, weather or not it lead to his own death.

Metis took a few quick steps to his right (stepping over Rem) ((I believe this is where Rem is now - On the ground to Metis' right?)) deciding now that the most emediout threat was Rodger. He used the speed of Rodger's charge against him knowing it would be hard for him to stop quickly. Metis brought his blade up level with Rodger's chest moving into his (Rodger's) charge as he (Metis) pivoted his body away from Rodgers blade.

((Oh, I'm so confused, so if my responce doesn't make logical sence please someone explaine to me all of WTF just happened and where everyone is in relation to eachother now and I'll change it. I'm not sure if I missed something or what, but somehow I don't think that worked correctly. Metis and his author are *so* confused, LOL.))

((I'm confused, you're confused, everybody's confused. Yeah, let's just go with the flow.))

Angel spotted the knight about to attack the charging Roger. To prevent this, he let his light blade extend into a whip and lassoed the knight around the waist, just when the knight pivoted his body away from Roger's blade. He then yanked the whip, causing the knight to be jerked back into Angel's current position ((standing to Rem's left?)) He then pulled out a light blade and held it to the fallen knight's neck.

"Roger's a little busy right now," Angel said. "He doesn't need you to interfere. Don't you have something else to worry about right now?"

((I think I should TRY to clear up the confusion...Angel and Metis were in a sword-lock when Reman was thrown in their direction. Reman was then attacked by Roger after he had gotten to his feet. While this was happening Angel and Metis are still duking it out, I guess I have to wait for Q's reply...)

((OMG... so I totallf f***** up then? LOL. There where so many posts, and edits, and I was SO confused, lmao... Thought I have not the slightest clue what to do now, because Metis never wanted to get into a tussle with Angle in the first place, he simply couldn't let Angle kill Rem. Oh, what a mess... and now there's Rodger and Metis wants nothing bad to happen to him eather. Oi, Metis is having moral delema's lol. Ok... I guess we'll just go with the flow as lightpaladen sugested... hehehe... b/c I don't know how to fix this. Aaahhh... this is so much harder than tradition RPGs lmao. That's what makes it fun thought, right? - Please forgive the debackle, but I'm just going to reply to Angle's last action, and ast as if "everything else" just happened, logical or not, lol.))

After being so rudely yanked back over to Angle’s side, Metis was compleatly pissed now, and his head was pounding, and by all the gods he felt like he was going to puke, he swear if he lived threw this he’d never touch a mug of ale again so long as he lived. Metis held his sword loosely in his left hand, in a complacent jester, knowing he was no match for this mage.

"Roger's a little busy right now," Angel said. "He doesn't need you to interfere. Don't you have something else to worry about right now?"

“Look, I have no desire to fight you or him, and I don’t exactly feel like joining Mithesius at the moment either,” Metis said trying hard to bite back the sound of annoyance in his voice, “this hole thing is some kind of cosmic joke! By the gods, we were just trying to have a damn conversation and then all of you people showed up and interfered... I don’t want any blood on my hands over this stupid misunderstanding.”

Rem rolled to his feet, deflecting an upward strike with his shield. His arm ached with the impact: Roger's sword was heavy.

Rem backed away from the young man, tightening the straps of the shield to his arm. Metis should have been finished with the assassin by now; one arrow had reached its target, and Rem smelled blood. A quick glance over the shoulder told him this was not the case.

Swinging the long sword defensively, he moved towards the knight. Back to back they would have an advantage; both soldier and knight knew how to fight as a paired team. He hoped the differences in experience wouldn't be too great.

Rem weighed his options. The assassin was harder to kill then he had thought. That left it up to him to kill Roger, so that together he and Metis would be able to wear the other out. He should be on the offensive.

Rem ducked behind his shield as another attack landed. If he lived through this, his arm would be bruised for a week. Roger's sword was heavy, but his motions were slowed as a result. There had been several opportunities for a killing counterblow on that swing alone. Rem held back. "I can't do it," he realized. "I can't bring myself to kill the fool. What have I become?"

Instead, he swung hard and wildly, forcing Roger to jump back. Out of range, he relaxed his left fist, loosened the shield straps, and threw it.

Rem didn't bother to check if the distraction had worked. He turned towards Metis, who was now being held at swordpoint by Angel, shoving the knight out of the way, and struck with all his strength. The assassin was wielding two whips. He would not be able to parry, and wouldn't see the attack coming regardless. But both facts were irrelevant, Rem knew; his back was now unprotected, and exposed to Roger's wrath.

((Umm...Angel isn't weilding two whips...he currently has a blade against Metis's throat. So that makes it a sword in one hand and a whip in the other. Just so ya know.))

((Hrm, I know he had a sword and a whip at one point, but then Rem stuck the whip into the ground with his dagger. When you used a whip again, I assumed you had turned the sword into another whip.))

((I know... I think you should end it for him Q.

~Marjorie))

Anya stepped outside for a breath of air, pulling her hood up against the chill of night. The people in there had been asking her too many questions, as if they knew who she was... back then. She had only wanted a quiet place to rest her feet, and usually no one paid any attention to her whatsoever. She was just a Sister, passing through, nothing odd about that.

She paused. There was the sound of a scuffle coming from the alley. Quickly, soundlessly, she turned the corner to see what was happening.

'That boy looks hurt. The knight looks drunk. This man is just watching. And the other two are still fighting.' She assessed the situation in a moment and decided that it would be best if she talked to the knight.

Drunk he might be, but he seemed the best to talk to to try and end the situation. Without bloodshed.

Without a sound she walked up to the man, making sure to avoid the battle.

"What is happening out here?" she softly asked his feet.

Metis let his eyes fall on the woman for an instant. She looked like a woman of the cloth, but seeing as she was obviously not afraid of the situation he felt some trapidation about her apearence.

"This is no place for you sister," he answered looking her over quickly.

No fear at all, but perhaps that was due to her faith... "I've been trying to find a peaceful end to this situation," he could not liy. Metis followed her gaze to where Rodger lay at his feet, "He's in no daner from me."

((Ack... you changed on me, hang on. I'll change my responce in a seck.))

((Heh, I can't believe Eldarath caused all this trouble))

Roger made no attempt to move as the foot pinned him to the ground. He knew his captor to be the knight from his voice, he wondered were Reman was. The knight took the pains to relieve Roger of his second sword, an unecessary action; he was in no condition to fight.

Breathing was a nightmare, he breathed in short gasps to lessen the pain in his chest. He hoped he hadn't broken a rib. The weight on his back eased as the knight stepped to his side. From the direction of his feet he seemed to be facing someone.

Roger lifted his head but felt his surroundings swim around him as the pain came afresh, he could hardly breath... then came the silence... and the darkness.

((What do you mean you can't believe Eldarath caused all of this trouble? He is a Black Dragon after all, and he was taunting a drunk knight who was depressed over the loss of his page and challenging his morals. I knew something would happen, lol.))

((I knew he would cause a fight, but I didn't expect it to turn out this way. I actually thought Metis would start a fight with it and Roger, Reman, and Angel would help him. It's better this way I guess.))

((Himura-D go to "Question"))

"I will care for him," Anya said, her eyes on Roger who lay gasping on the ground, "if you will allow me to. He is out of the fight anyway. Stop the other two from causing more injuries for me to attend to, if you will."

She knelt down beside Roger to see what she could do.

Metis gave the woman one last quick glance and then moved quickly across the alley toward Rem and Angle. Raising his sword, reading hiself to attack or defend. "Stand down Angle," he said as he moved beisde Rem, "you can not hope to beat both of us and come out alive. Let us end this without bloodshed."

"Perhaps we should hear HIS story. I am sure he also has an explanation. Perhaps one that does not skirt around the issue at hand."

Walking forward with her customary silent steps, she continued. "You are fortunate that there were not any more serious injuries than the young man's bruised ribs. What would your Lord have said if he knew?"

She could tell that that would have the greatest effect on him. Having lived in a convent for the last seven years she knew the truly faithful on sight. This knight would most likely feel ashamed of himself for this meaningless scuffle.

"Clearly you know the answer to that question," Metis answered in a soft voice, "but I could not let Angle take the life of a man who had saved my own for no reason. And I wish not to skirt about the issues or avoid the truth. If it would sute you I will tell you the hole story from the start with the capture and possabul death of my Page, three months agao. It is a long tale however and as I have said I do not want to tell it here."

Anya considered the situation for a moment. There was the man standing in the alley. She could not begin to guess what he would do. There was the elf who concievably couldn't do anything but stand there with the swords to his throat. There was the boy, lying in the alley behind her. And there were the two men, the knight and the old soldier.

"Perhaps we should return to the tavern and discuss this over soup. And water. The dragon has left, and I am sure that this little misunderstanding can be cleared up. Besides that, the young man needs to rest."

Metis looked wearily from Angle to Rem... Some food would do him good for sure. He withdrew his sword cautiously and implored Rem to back off with a look. "I do not believe he will cause us any more trouble," he said at last.

Then he turned to face the woman who had been addressing him, "I believe that would be wise."

((OMG, I am SO sorry about not updating sooner. Well, this is a fitting end for Angel and so I shall continue it))

Angel knew that he had been defeated. With two swords to his throat, he couldn't hope to fight back. But then he saw Rem withdraw his swords, which gave him some relief. He then looked Rem sraight in the eye with that "scary, yet mesmerizing" look, and said this:

"I thank you for sparing my life," he said. "I still have a century and a half to live, and I would like to make the most of it. Besides, were I not to yield," he said, turning his attention towards Metis, "I still wouldn't kill a fellow half-elf. It's against my moral conduct."

Rem replaced the dagger in its sheath but kept his sword drawn.

"You must be mistaken. There are no elves where I come from. And I still haven't decided that you are going to live. I'm going to ask you some questions, and you will answer them quickly, without avoiding. Who sent you here?"

((I guess Metis will be surprised at this revelation, as would everyone else... anyways I've edited my last post so that Roger actually passes out. I hope someone will be kind enough to get him a room, and return his two swords. Since he was well out of it he didn't notice Anya's dagger, I don't respond well to hints!)

Metis raised a questioning eyebrow in Angle's direction. "You are the only elf here."

Then Metis turned down the alley way and retrieved Rodger's swords. 'Quite heavy,' he thought as he lifted them from the ground, 'even for their size.' "I know you cherish these," he whispered softly to Rodger's unconscious body as he walked close to him, "and I would not have you separated from your family hair-looms."

Angel didn't answer, so Rem continued. "An elf, are you? I suppose I should be flattered. I'm valuable enough to warrant not only an assassin, but an assassin of elvish blood who wields unexplained powers."

He looked down where Angel kneeled, still silent. "Well then, if you truly are an elf I can expect to get nothing from you. In that case I should end your life now, so that you may go to the beyond with your honor intact." He lifted his sword once more, gently resting the edge across one side of the half-elf's neck, and waited expectantly.

Metis shot an unsettled glance at Rem, but he wouldn't interfear. This was no longer his afair, and Angle was quite capabul of answering a few questions to save his own life... If he chose not to, well, that was Angle's problem now.

((Don't worry... Metis is going to put you up with a bed and buy you a meal when you wake up. ))

((Ok I removed much of the posting in this thread. Can we just not start another fight so we can go on the quest now?))

((I will start no fights. Knight's honor, lol. ))

((Anya doesn't want to start a fight, but she will finish one if she has to!))

Anya noticed Metis shake his head. Did he suspect what she had hidden in her satchel?

'Maybe I can prevail upon the man's good sense. After all, he does not seem to be evil. Neither does the elf for that matter. I should ensure that this goes no further, however, if they refuse.'

Quickly she rummaged through the bag, searching for a certain jar by touch. All of her ceramic jars had the name of the contents stamped on them so she knew which one it was. Quickly she unscrewed the top with one hand, making sure not to spill the contents. With the other hand she spread some of the sleeping root sap on two of the daggers without removing them from the satchel. Hopefully she would not have to use them.

"Excuse me, sir," she addressed Rem as she walked closer, "but would it not be better to take this inside? I have taken a room at this inn if you would like to keep this conversation private. The young man also needs rest. I am sure that you are all worried about him."

'Thank Mithesius,' Metis thought, 'someone is finally seeing to reason.'

"She is right, Rem," Metis said in a calm and even tone of voice, "Rodger needs to be taken out of the cold, and we can take... this," Metis gestured to Angle, "inside where we will no longer get interupted.

all of a sudden feeling very foolish Hunter came out of the shadows and calmly asked" could i possibly be of any help carrying that man to a room" indicating Rodger.

"That would be best, but let us wait until these two end this foolishness," she replied, not looking at the man who had spoken.

She stood between Rem and Angel now, hand clutching one of the daggers in her satchel. Her eyes found the ground again, the appearance of humility, as she waited for their reply.

" yes maim" Hunter said as he leaned down next to Roger. he pulled out a cloth from a pouch and used it as a pillow for Rodgers head.

((Ok, I think it's time to wait for Q and lightpaladen to reply now.))

Angel didn't flinch when Rem's two blades rested on his throat. He stood up slowly, the blades never leaving their mark. Angel gave Rem a very intimidating glare.

"Firstly," Angel spoke, "I am not an elf. I am half-elf, half-human. Secondly, I am not an assassin, though many such as yourself would mistake me for one. I am a thief, and I work for no one but myself. And thirdly, if you would kindly put down your sword and dagger, I would be kind enough to explain to you my reason for attacking you. I will not attack you again, for it is already clear that I have lost and you have won. I may be a thief, but I'm a person of my word."

Rem regarded the elf's angry glare. Who did he think he was? Regardless, he replaced his dagger to its sheath and lowered his sword to the ground. The sword would stay ready: he had no trust for Angel, and would have his head were he to make a false move again.

"You owe an explanation, and a damn good one at that. One doesn't stab someone in the back if they mean no harm." 'Or if one is, indeed, a man of honor,' he thought silently before turning to the others. "Get Roger inside. He may be a fool for meddling in maters not of his concern, but he's a young fool with time ahead to learn wisdom."

"Does he already have a room", asked Hunter as he very carfully picked up Rodger.

"Lay him in mine," said Anya, letting go of the dagger and instead fishing out the key which she handed over. "It is up the stairs, last door on the left."

She glanced in the knight's direction, addressing his feet. "Perhaps you should help to carry him, sir knight. You must be careful with him. Lay him on his back so as not to put any pressure on his chest."

"Perhaps you two should accompany us upstairs," she said in the general direction of Rem and Angel. "If it is true that this fight was started by accidental interruptions then would it not be best to find someplace more quiet? At the very least the nightwatchman might have a few questions for you both if he discovers you here."

Hopefully they would take her up on her offer. If they did not, she was determined to stay in the alley with them. No use letting it get out of hand again.

"yes maim" Hunter said to Anya and then addressing Metis he said "you heard the lady are you going to help or not"

Angel nodded in this new woman's direction.

"She's right, you know," Angel said to Rem. "If I am to explain myself, then it's best I do it inside. I don't want any more trouble tonight as much as you." 'Then again,' he thought as he gathered up his white coat, 'trouble and I are common acquaintances.' He turned and headed for the tavern door, his eyes still fixed on Rem.

Anya hurried to the half-elf's side with her characteristically silent steps. When she had caught up, she walked with him, hoping that her presence would diffuse any thought, in the mind of the man who had won the fight, about attacking again.

"Thank you, sir," she muttered so that only Angel could hear. "It would have been foolish to continue. You seem decent. What is your name?" She didn't look up as she watched the path in front of her, waiting for the half-elf's reply.

'Hopefully there's a logical explanation for all of this. He does not look in the least bit like an assassin. I should know,' she thought.

Metis shifted his grip on Rodgers swords so that he held them both in his left hand, blades resting on his shoulder them turned to Rogder and the other man. "Yes, of course I will help you," he answered lending a hand.

((Oops, sorry... didn't realize the other guy was already picking him up. LOL, I don't know what you want Metis to do, he's only got one hand, give him some direction otherwise I

ll just say Metis "helps" lol.))

getting the key from Anya, Hunter and Metis carried rodger towards the door

one at the door hunter yelled at it "Open up"

((Tuck his feet under your free arm while Hunter gets his arms. That way you don't have to grab him around the chest. That was the sort of thing Anya was trying to avoid.))

((LOL, ok... that works.))

"That one," the door said smugly, "is NOT coming back in."

"You'll have no more trouble from me," Metis replyed feeling all the more foolish now to be scolded by the damn door, "can't you see we've an injured man here."

"Why I should open for you again is beyond me..." the door grumbled as it finally opened.

Anya followed the two of them and the boy to the open door, turning to make sure that Angel was still keeping step with her.

Angel stopped glaring at Rem and turned to the new woman with a look of wonder in his eyes.

"Angel Macleod is my name," he replied. "And who are you to ask for my name?" He paused, awaiting a reply from this woman.

"I am merely a Sister on a pilgrimage. My name is Anya."

Looking down at his feet as she was, she didn't notice his wondering look.

"Shall we go inside, now? I do not wish to leave the young man unattended."

Without waiting for a reply she continued into the tavern, hoping he would keep up.

((back into the tavern at last, lol...))