A Lover Scorned [LORENSO]

[keri]

It had been two years since her heart had shattered. Two years since his blood had flowed from the wound her blade had created to wet the ground. Two years since the tears had left tracks down her face. Then she had sworn to never open her heart, she would allow the fragments to remain but she had hardened her heart to the world. Kieran still blames Lorenso, he could have taken some of the fault away from Matias. They had worked together, but Lorenzo was free to go and Kieran ended up covered in Matias’ blood.

Now she was on a hunt, she had been told to find Lorenso before he vanished from Antiva again. She hadn’t seen him since Mati’s death and she knew that he had no idea of her rage against him. Kieran had kept her loathing to herself, just in case this particular job ever came up. She wanted him dead, and she would see to it. The order had only told her to dispose of him, and that meant either death or he could be locked up. If she couldn’t kill him now she could always have him thrown behind bars so she could do it later.

She was dressed as a traveler, her hair pulled back to show off the soft lines of her neck and face. A scarf was tied over her hair to hide its color and her ears. Lorenso would know her if he saw her pointed ears. She was wearing a pair of black trousers with soft leather boots that came up to her calf. A loose shirt made of deep green covered her top, and a white vest completed the look. Her blades were hidden well enough that one couldn’t see them on her. She was a crow and they knew how to hide a weapon properly.

[Lorenso]

Ah Antiva, the great jewel of the east. A place that rains often, but where the flowers always bloom, at least the saying says so. At this particular day, it was as usual raining and the night had fallen upon Antiva City, the capital of its land. The streets however was never quiet, they roamed with people even at night as many was either on their way to the closest whorehouse or most certainly was out doing business in the shadows. Being so close to the sea and having such a great wealth of coin and resources made Antiva city a great meeting place for pirates and alike, it was the home of the Antivan royalties and the head quarter of the world’s most famous assassins, the Antivan Crows.

It had been weeks since Lorenso had seen Antiva, as he had been gone on a mission where he was supposed to kill the Ferelden king, but as he had failed he was now on the run. So far he had managed to stay safe and hidden from being discovered by his former comrades, the Crows, as among them, failure was never tolerated and it was severely punished by death, which Lorenso knew quite well. He had managed to survive with the little he had and he had been offered to join a pirate ship ruled by Mariana, as a room for shelter and safety. It had however been Mariana and Alistair who had scorned his life in the first place, once he failed killing the King, but he was glad they had let him go and in return he would gladly show them his loyalty by joining Mariana`s crew. As until now, Lorenso had traveled on the ship and with them being docked in Antiva, he had agreed to do a favor for his new found friends.

Clad in common robes, Lorenso walked through the streets carefully and patient, always on the watch for assassins and bandits. Being robbed or killed in the streets of the Antivan capital was common, but on this special night Lorenso was being extra careful as he knew someone was hunting him and before he took the chance of sprinting across the street, he pulled his hood on more over his face as he tried to hide whom he was. As he reached the other side of the road, he walked up the stairs and unlocked the door, stepping in silently. The place Lorenso broke into belonged to a man called Ignacio, who had been Lorenso`s former master and mentor. He knew that Ignacio was not there, but he hoped to find some clues about his whereabouts, as Alistair wanted to know why the Crows wanted to assassinate him.

[keri]

The rain was getting annoying. Kieran wasn’t a big fan of it, it made tracking hard and made her more uncomfortable than was necessary. A bit of movement caught her eye and slowly she turned to watch. She had known that Lorenso would go back to his mentor’s house even though the man was gone. She shook her head slightly, thinking that he was stupid for being so predictable. Every crow knew that being predictable was what would get you killed, always be spontaneous.

Quickly Kieran moved, keeping to the shadows. A quick look into the window told her that Lorenso was still inside looking for something. A slight smirk crossed her lips and she waltzed into the door behind him. Quick as lighting she was behind him, putting her arms around his neck in a choke hold. She didn’t want him dead yet, she wanted to merely hold him for a little while. ”Lorenso, have you forgotten your training already? Weren’t you and Matias the ones who told me to never keep to a pattern?” Her voice was cold and sharp, like a blade. She still hadn’t forgiven him and he was sure to know that.

”Tell me why come here? Of all places you should have known I would find you here.” Before Lorenso got any ideas Kieran had a blade in her hand and pressed it into the small of his back. Not hard enough to draw blood just yet but with enough pressure that he would know it was there. If he struggled she would stab him in the spine and he would be useless.

[Lorenso]

Looking after some documents that laid out on the table, Lorenso noticed the door behind him moved as his eyes glanced on the window glass in front of him, which were on the opposite side of the table. Oh he knew what it meant; it was not the first time he had been sneaked upon. In advance he slowly moved his hand at his side without drawing notice, grabbing the grip of his knife as he waited on the person to make their move. Now he could risk being stabbed in the back at once, but he took the chance as he knew it would most likely not be the case if it were a Crow. The Crows always loved to interrogate their victims beforehand, and that was something he predicted would happen this time as well, as long it was a Crow who now where about to catch him that is.

As Lorenso suddenly was caught, he realized it was no common Crow, it was his former friend who he had loved, and she was now holding him in a choke hold with a knife at his back. Luckily he had seen her coming, but with a knife now pointing against him he knew it would be dangerous for him to move, but as skilled he was he knew exactly how to get the advantage of the situation. With a smile on his face, believing this was rather interesting, he replied in an Antivan accent. "Oh my, seems like I`ve been caught by something sweet and beautiful.” He said in a charming way, trying to calm her down even he heard how cold and sharp her voice sounded, knowing she hated him.

"Hm..., yes you are right, we told you this, but if I remember correctly you were also so more cleverer than us." He said with a teasing smile on his face as he carefully tried to look over his shoulder, before he continued speaking. “Why I am here is none of your business, but if I were you, I would worry about other things.” Lorenso spoke firm and serious, and then revealed his own surprise as he held his own knife close to her precious parts, and he pressed it further up, not drawing blood from her, but made clear he too could be a threat to her. In fact he had held the knife close to her the entire time since she grabbed him, and it was something he hoped would prove useful. “You are good, but not that good.”

Then suddenly, Lorenso slipped a knife through his sleeve into his hand and with an instant move using only his wrist, he threw the knife up at the wall. Cutting the ropes of the chandelier that hung above the table such that it got loose and started to wave, Lorenso then bowed his head and lot the chandelier pass over him, either hitting or avoiding Kieran, depending on what she choose to do. As the chandelier came back again, Lorenso grabbed it and he jumped onto the table, taking a leap and threw himself out the window. With the chandelier crushing the window glass and falling on the ground outside, Lorenso managed to throw himself of the chandelier in the nick of time and he landed on the roof of another buiilding, hanging on the edge as the rain poured down. Slowly Lorenso pulled himself up and as he stood glancing back with a smile before he ran from Kieran, from roof top to roof top.

PS: Now as this will be a chase between characters, remember to use the stats. Lorenso has more dex than Kieran, which is why he is quicker and greater in athletic. However your character is smarter.

[keri]

"Oh my, seems like I`ve been caught by something sweet and beautiful.” His smile made her skin crawl. It made her teeth clench and grid together for a moment as she tried to keep her cold calmness. It was hard to remain calm when she was near this man. Kieran blamed Lorenso for her broken heart, and she would hate him until her dying breath. "Hm..., yes you are right, we told you this, but if I remember correctly you were also so more cleverer than us." She laughed but there was no real humor in it. It was a cold sound, one that showed how much he was not in her favor.

“Why I am here is none of your business, but if I were you, I would worry about other things.” Kieran had a tart remark but before she could utter her response she felt the touch of his blade. It wasn’t hard enough to draw blood, but she could feel its bite well enough through her cloth. “You are good, but not that good.” Before Kieran could say anything Lorenso acted, throwing a knife at a chandelier. It swung and Kieran was forced to release Lorenso, and duck before she was hit. Her eyes blazed with fury as she watched the elf jump out the window and onto an adjacent roof.

With a screech Kieran took off, carefully placing her feet so she would slip as she made her way outside. She was smarter than him; she always had been the clever one of the group. Her feet hit the ground with only the softest of sounds; she would have been silent if not for the rain. Kieran kept one eye on the rooftop as she cut through lower alleys and side streets. She knew she had to cut him off before he could escape. For now she just had to keep moving. Kieran reached up and tossed the bandana from her head, revealing her strawberry locks and her spiked strap. If this was going to come to a fight she wanted all of her weapons at her disposal.

[Lorenso]

As Lorenso noticed Kieran choose to follow him through the streets and alley`s that could easily lead one astray, he quickened his paste and jumped from roof top to roof top. The rain was pouring down and it made it difficult to keep a good footing, but as athletic Lorenso was he knew how to handle it. He kept his balance and whenever he was close to falling he grabbed what was possible to hold on, and when he looked back he could not stop thinking on how beautiful Kieran seemed as the rain made her red hair and clothes wet. In fact it even became difficult for Lorenso to move as his clothes got soaked and sticky, and thus as he ran and he threw off his cloak to lose some weight, before he took a giant leap and grabbed a clothesline, sliding down and entered another building.

The building Lorenso slide into was a common brothel and as he stood there he was surprised to see himself surrounded by beautiful women, all shocked and surprised to see a strong man in wet clothes. With a cheeky smile he looked at them, before he choose to continue running. Had it not been that he was now being chased, he would of course had stayed in the brothel, but now there was no time. Running through the hallway inside the building, he jumped out another window in the end of the hall and came onto another roof. From there he continued running and headed deeper into the city where the houses was more packed together, the more buildings he thought the worse it would be for Kieran to follow him through the streets.

Looking back he noticed Kieran was still after his tail, and he thought if he was going to return to Mariana`s ship he would first off need to lose his former love interest from following him, by either running from her or by hiding. The rain was getting worse and worse by the minute, but Lorenso kept focus on where he stepped, but if he did not lose Kieran soon he would certainly fall and hit the ground. Thus as he noticed an alley in the distance that lead nowhere, he thought of luring Kieran into it, so that he could run passed and continue without being followed any longer. Hopefully she would not discover what he was planning, even though it was a possiblity she would, still he had to try. While looking at Kieran as he ran side by side next to her, he on the roof and her on the ground, he was kept running in a faste paste as he was leading her straight for the dead end.

[keri]

He was much faster than her, and if it hadn’t been for her training she would have never had the stamina to keep up with the other elf. Kieran was silently thankful for all the years she had worked hard at this so that she could have her revenge soon. The rain was coming down harder and harder as the night pressed on, and quickly Kieran became soaked. There was nothing extra on her now as she had stripped off everything but her light armor. Thankfully that wasn’t holding water as much as cloth would. Dark blue eyes watched as Lorenso entered another house by sliding in through the clothes line. Carefully she lessened her pace, making sure she would see him once he came out.

The bastard was heading into the heart of the city, she knew that as soon as she spotted him leaving the first building. He was probably hoping he would lose her that way. Kieran growled through teeth gritted against the cold wind. She needed to end this now, if not sooner. Kieran knew this city like the back of her hand and was curious as to why he was leading her towards a dead end. With a smirk she guessed his plan; he wanted to lure her in there so she would lose him. What a fool for thinking that she would be so stupid. Kieran lowered her head slightly, to give herself a burst of speed. She needed to cut him off and do it quickly.

Kieran knew where they were, so she ran past the alley, hoping Lorenso would just assume that she was in the shadows as she entered a building he had no choice to run into. Upstairs she went, until she stood right at the window he would need to come through. He had one of two choices now, enter the room Kieran was currently in or leap down to the ground and more than likely injure himself badly enough that running wouldn’t be his forte any longer. Kieran kept to the shadows, hoping that she was hidden well enough that Lorenso would just come into the building and hope that she had lost her.

[Lorenso]

Running in a fast paste on the roofs, Lorenso glanced back to look if Kieran still was following him. Instead of running into the dead end as he had hoped she would, he noticed she ran passed it, but he did not see where she went. Perhaps he lost her after all, he thought as he quickened his speed. Believing she now was gone, Lorenso headed straight for the building that he could see in front of him, and it was a building he had to enter no matter what as it was a large building. The rain continued to pour down and his clothes were getting more and more soaked, which also was starting to make him freeze.

Approaching the house he could see an open window and with a leap he jumped through it, entering the house as he had planned. The room he entered was a dark room with no light, but from where he stood he could see it was the home of a wealthy noble. It was decorated with the finest of things, it had a red carpet and in the corner he could see a bunch of pillows, which most likely was used to sit on. On the walls he could see shelf`s full of books, and paintings of the various nobles who most likely lived in the house. Believing he now was out of sight from Kieran, he took the opportunity to get warmer. He rubbed his arms to get more heat into his body, but then he could hear an old woman speak and yell from the first floor, as if she was angry and then as she came up, he could see her in the hall way with a few men behind her. Suddenly she was pointing at him and Lorenso thought she might have seen him come into the building, but then as Lorenso turned around, he noticed the woman had been pointing on someone else.

[keri]

The few moments she had gained alone and out of the rain had made her feel much better. Her breath was still now instead of coming out in gasps. She was calm and in control. Kieran didn’t even move when Lorenso came through the window. She moved carefully, staying close to him but far enough away that he wouldn’t notice. Then the damn woman ruined it.

She had come up the stair and was now yelling and pointing at Kieran. Lorenso turned his head realizing that the woman hadn’t been pointing at him. Without a thought Kieran had a dagger in her hand and she lunged, her blade aimed right at Lorenso’s eye. She had to hit him, she just had to. She needed him diabled or else she would never stand a chance. Kieran was much smarter but her opponent was quicker and stronger. This wouldn’t be an easy fight.

[sorry its short, but I know that you wanted to hurry this thread along]

[Lorenso]

Turning around, Lorenso was surprised and shocked to see Kieran. She had been in the shadows of the room ever since he had jumped through the window, but thanks to the warning the old woman had given him he had quickly figured he was not all alone. It was however impossible for him to block the knife that came quickly at his face, and she hit his right eye got all of sudden blackened. His right eye was gone and he could no longer see, only with his left eye. Lorenso screamed in horror and the pain was unbearable, blood ran down his right cheek and he tried to cover his eye with both his hands. Then just as he did, he stepped backwards and stumbled on his back.

Lorenso hit the floor hard and he wanted to see, but he could not. He had no clue where Kieran was at the moment he fell, but he hoped she had not killed him yet. Just as he lay there he bite his teeth together to withstand the pain, but the pain rushed through him like pulsing torture. With no sight on his right eye, he would now rely on his left eye, but trying to keep that up as the other was in pain were difficult.

The old woman who had seen what had happened screamed out of fear and disgust, and the two men who had followed her up, most likely her son and his friend, stepped in front to protect her, but they remained in awe. The son wanted to act and attack the elven woman who just had stabbed the other elf in the eye, but because he was a coward he dared not to attack one with a knife, as he knew it most likely was a member of the famous assassins, the Antivan Crows.

[keri]

The knife connected, and a cold and bitter smile crossed Kieran’s pale lips. Lorenso took to screaming before he hit the floor. The poor bastard was writhing on the ground holing his right eye. She knew he was probably wondering when the death stroke would come for him but she was under orders to wait. Sometimes she hated her orders but Kieran would never be stupid enough to disobey. She had reached her ranking because she was precise and she listened.

Kieran turned her gaze towards the woman and the boys, the cold look of a killer still tainting her sharp features. They all moved back a step and she smiled even wider. With a flick of her hand she dismissed them, knowing they would be smart enough to know that she was probably a Crow and would kill them as well if they stood in her way. She had no use for stupidity and they would do well to get lost elsewhere.

Without any more hesitation she pulled some rope from around her waist, she had been smart enough to bring that with her. Silently she went about her task to tie up Lorenso to make bringing him in all the easier.

[Lorenso]

(This sound like a fitting ending for this thread, so I say we end it here and continue more when we enter the Antivan dungeon, yes? )

[keri]

[sounds good]