Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 7, 2012 22:09:38 GMT
A low, steady drumbeat accompanied the rain this morning, and despite the cold and damp the villagers gathered around to witness the grisly spectacle to come. This small and nameless place had been able to avoid the attentions of the Doge thus far, but their good fortune had reached it's end, it seemed.
The small cluster of soldiers stood in the town square, variously armed with swords and halberds, clad in breastplate, greaves, gauntlets, and barbuta styled helmets, their postures bored as they stood in a line, a dozen in all. One stood aside, playing the drum to attract the villagers, another, visibly annoyed, stood and held an umbrella for a herald clad in blue and gold, the armor running down his armor and soaking the padded cotton he wore beneath. The remaining ten stood in a loose line, weapons drawn, occasionally giving a sharp tug on the leashes they held, short lengths of rope that had been wrapped around the necks of a small group of young men, eyes downcast in fear. One would occasionally jerk forward, trying to run, before being dragged back and beaten with fist and boot, and forced to kneel by the soldiers once again.
When the crowd had gathered, the herald unrolled a scroll and stepped forward addressing the crowd in a deep bass roll. "By the order of our lord, Doge Balsamo, in the year of our lord 1592, all able-bodied men of suitable age are to report to the castle for conscription into our armies. Failure to do so will be considered a treasonous act and will be dealt with accordingly..." He paused, sighing and furling the scroll. "These ten men have been found in violation of this decree. As such, they will be put to death by the sword... Let this be a lesson to the rest of you. You are all subjects of the Doge, and you will follow his decrees."
The crowd of villagers muttered and cursed, but no single voice was raised in protest, no foot raised to step forward, no hand moved to stop the soldiers of the Doge. The execution would be carried out then, despite the desperate, silent pleas of the village, for someone, anyone to put an end to this madness...
|
|
|
Post by Amy Sorel on Dec 11, 2012 14:32:14 GMT
Setsuka just arrived in Europe in this small Italian village. Apart from the sailor getting her here, the little port was empty, she politely thanked the sailors once more, opened her umbrella and and walked for a while under the rain toward the village. She loved those rainy mornings, it was so calm...
But as she kept walking, she suddenly noticed the gathering a little farther. So that was why no one was at the port... Getting closer she noticed with horror the small group of prisonners and heard the cruel decree. She walked toward the crowd, holding her umbrella.
"Surely the Doge can show some compassion to those poor men... To kill his own people is not a good way to be followed and loved. And he needs loyal and faithful soldiers, not soldiers who hate and fear him."
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 13, 2012 4:37:13 GMT
The varied villagers quickly parted, terrified, as Setsuka strode toward them, making a clear path between the Doge's men and the strange woman. Did she not know who these men where?! Was she mad? Hushed whispers broke out among the poor european peasants as they stared at her, then the blue-clad herald, who sneered at her.
"And who are you, woman? Queen Elizabeth? You must be, to have the authority to question the commands of our lord. Now hold your tongue, lest I have you flogged."
|
|
|
Post by Amy Sorel on Dec 13, 2012 18:20:33 GMT
"And who are you, woman? Queen Elizabeth? You must be, to have the authority to question the commands of our lord. Now hold your tongue, lest I have you flogged."
The blond japanese knew that the doge was in his right to execute those men but to stand by and let them be executed was impossible to do. Her master had taught her to protect people and she will. Though he also told her to obey the law but… Those men were not real criminals, they only refused to go in the army. They didn’t kill, hurt or rob anyone… Looking at the desperate men once more gave Setsuka the courage to still stand up to the herald. She smiled while saying :
"You can call me like that if you wish. I was thinking I needed an european name…"
Quickly assessing the situation, Setsuka noticed the guards were more numerous than her of course but they were about as much as the prisonners. If they could fight as well, they could have a chance… Beside Mitsurugi was supposed to have beaten an army by himself, if she was to oppose him and win, she had to beat those men. But to win, surprise would have to play a big part.
Using her lightning speed, she quickly launched at the nearest guard and while kicking him in the stomach, she swiftly unsheathed her concealed blade and cut the rope tying the prisonner. As she then turned around to slash at another soldier's arm and make him lose his grip on his captive’s rope, she told the prisonners :
"The doge has a grim future for you so you might as well fight and escape now!"
Setsuka hoped they would react fast enough; it may be their only chance or else the soldiers will be unforgiving. She tried to not think about the ones that will not survive this risky decision she made. But she also told herself that they were condemned anyway and some may be saved now… Since she was not really Queen Elizabeth but only a stranger without any power or influence, it would probably have been impossible to convince the herald and the doge to let the men go peacefully…
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 17, 2012 1:53:33 GMT
"W-what?! Kill her! Kill this wench!" The herald howled in rage, one gloved finger pointing at her dramatically in the still second after Setsuka attacked, one guard doubled over from being kicked in the gut and the other clutching his arm where he'd been cut. The quiet second stretched, then everything became chaos, the guard that had been holding the umbrella for the herald throwing the umbrella to the ground with a feral howl, drawing his sword and lunging at Setsuka with madness in his eyes, attempting to skewer her. The wounded soldier shakily transfered his sword to his left hand and made a clumsy feint at her head, blood soaking his doublet from the wound on his right arm.
The prisoner that had had his rope cut turned and tackled the still-winded soldier, trying to wrest his blade from him, while the prisoner of the wounded guard simply rose in a scramble and sprinted away, fleeing the fight as fast as possible. Chaos erupted as the other prisoners attempted to struggle or free, two of them quickly cut down by the Doge's soldiers, the others managing to hold their own at least in the opening seconds of the engagement. Screams of terror broke out among the crowd, which turned to run or cower, fleeing back to their homes or simpy falling into the mud, covering their heads and faces as their fellows ran past them.
|
|
|
Post by Amy Sorel on Dec 17, 2012 19:01:01 GMT
Setsuka looked at the herald and thought she had to strike at him to convince the others to flee. But first, she had to take care of the umbrella holder coming furiously toward her and the wounded soldier. Since the wounded soldier could not fight with his good arm, Setsuka assumed he would be weaker and more easily dispatched, so as he made a clumsy feint at her head, she used the opening and slashed at his left rib.
"Let the wounds from my blade bring your demise!" She then turned to meet the appointed umbrella holder with a slashing strike.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 17, 2012 21:18:51 GMT
Setsuka's blade flicked easily past the injured soldier's guard, and she saw his face through the slits of his helmet go white with shock and pain, collapsing as she easily penetrated the simple padding on the sides of his breastplate, where the armor didn't cover, blood seeping from the deep gash she'd opened in his side. The second soldier, however, hit with the force of a charging bull, snarling obscenities and profanities in Italian without pausing to draw breath at he hacked and hewed at her without much finesse. Though not in the same league as Nightmare, Sigfried, or Astaroth, this man was still unusually strong, and this close to him the air tasted foul, a miasma of bloodlust and insanity.
|
|
|
Post by Amy Sorel on Dec 17, 2012 21:43:53 GMT
Setsuka had find the appointed umbrella holder quite agressive when he launched at her but it was nothing until she really clashed with him. The man was furious and strangely strong, surprising Setsuka who suddenly realized something : Could he be a malfested? His agressiveness would come from Soul Edge? Having been malfested herself for only some times since Edgemaster healed her, she somehow had the feeling she recognized this aura. Somehow destabilized by this, Setsuka could only evade his dangerous strikes and not attack. Yet she had to help the prisonners and take care of the herald soon…
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 3, 2013 8:23:42 GMT
[Apologies for the long delay while I was away celebrating the holidays.]
The herald continued to rage and scream as the light rain slowly soaked and ruined his expensive uniform, the guard swinging his sword like a club, her skill and speed letting her stay a step ahead of his wild blows. Out of the corner of her eye Setsuka could see two of the guards, blades already spattered with the blood of the prisoners they'd so recently executed, rushing forward, circling and trying to corner her and curtail her brief withdrawal, to force her back into mortal combat with the fierce malfested soldier.
|
|
|
Post by Amy Sorel on Jan 9, 2013 0:55:52 GMT
[Apologies as well for the delay.]
From the corner of her eyes, Setsuka noticed the men trying to force her into the fight with the malfested. Seeing the blood of the poor executed men on their blades angered Setsuka who did not want to have started this fight in vain not beeing able to save anyone but she new she had to keep her head cold to fight efficiently, like her beloved master always told her.
Yet she wondered if she should try to fight the two guards before she took care of the malfested one, but the malfested was more dangerous she should get rid of him as soon as she could and not lose time wondering what to do. Beside beating the strong one may scare the others. So she had to beat the malfested one then the enraged herald. Those were her targets.
Setsuka quickly ran toward the malfested man and unsheathed her blade once more with a lightning speed to slash at him before she quickly followed with a thrust of her umbrella in his face. The umbrella would not hurt him too much but it may distract him while she would continue with a stronger slash from her katana.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 9, 2013 4:02:35 GMT
Dashing in close, that malfested stench of insanity grew more intense, the soldier howling triumph as he slapped her attack contemptuously to the side, his heavier blade and strength allowing him to turn aside her attack with brute force... but when her folded umbrella struck him directly in the face, his roar turned to a startled yelp, his followup strike going wild, and he teetered, one boot half-stuck in the mud and desperately off-balance, his guard open for Setsuka to finish it in a single blow.
|
|
|
Post by Amy Sorel on Jan 9, 2013 14:47:35 GMT
Taking advantage of the bad situation the malfested man was in, Setsuka didn't hesitate: she quickly stabbed him right in the uncovered part his armour did not protect: his neck.
"My blade never hesitates! Accept, your doom!"
Then turning her head toward the herald, a look of determination in her eyes, she told him as she began running to him:
"It's time to finish this! Get ready! The battle will be decided in an instant!"
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2013 3:54:12 GMT
The malfested soldier's howls of rage quickly cut off into a very terminal gurgle as her sword sunk into his neck, a spray of arterial crimson spurting out messily as he slowly crumpled backwards into the mud. The other soldiers hesitated, seeing their more powerful comrade dispatched so quickly, and their delaying left them a few paces behind as she started to move again, dashing through the rain toward the Doge's herald. The reedy man looked her in the eyes for the briefest moment, then twisted and started to bolt, heavy boots splashing through the puddles and mud, not even bothering to draw the stiletto sheathed at his belt.
|
|
|
Post by Amy Sorel on Jan 10, 2013 13:14:44 GMT
Seeing the herald flee before her, Setsuka began to run after him.
"At least, end your life fighting with honour!"
But even if she had contempt for such cowardly attitude, she quickly let go of him and decided to see how the rest was doing. She'd rather not kill too much people. What was important was to save the prisonners. Turning around, she told the guards:
"Follow your master if you don't want to die!"
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2013 0:14:20 GMT
The two soldiers who had been trying to herd her into the Malfested slid to a stop, blades wavering as they held them, eyes twitching, trying to turn and look to see what their allies where doing. After a moment, the brawl came to a close, several of the soldiers holding prisoners at swordpoint, others laying wounded or dead in the mud. The rain pattered down around them quietly, before one of the guards swallowed and made a show of sheathing his blade. "Fall back. We're here to protect the Herald."
Slowly, the other guards complied, keeping their weapons trained on the prisoners and Setsuka as they resumed formation, the drummer beginning to beat out a rhythm as the soldiers retreated, the last few in the formation dragging their wounded behind them. In all, six men lay dead, the Malfested and two soldiers, and three of the prisoners.
|
|