The Dancer and the Guard

[mithrarin]

The Markovich Traveling Performance Troupe had the unique distinction of being both wealthy enough to make any bandit or thief drool at the notion of taking a fraction of their revenues, and completely untouched by crime. It was, in fact, too big to touch: three dozen performers and twice the support staff didn't seem too threatening, but the score of mercenaries and soldiers hired to defend them did. To come away safely from a heist, brigands would need such numbers that planning, coordination, trust, and reward all became too difficult to easily arrange. And so the Markovich Troupe traveled in safety, its performers accustomed to luxury and hard work both, its staff proud, and many of its guards complacent.

They failed to realize that wealth came in many forms, and not all attackers were armies. If the dragon hadn't wanted to preserve as much property as possible, they'd have all been dead in an instant.

As flames split the air and the dragon's lizardlike minions stormed past the fallen guards at the camp's outskirts, Dust cut open the back of the tent with one sweep of his long sword. "If anyone is in here, get out! Now! It's lost!"

Comments

[redmare]

The moment the blade goes through the tent, Chinatsu holds up her dagger, keeping another girl behind her. They'd been told to hide in the tents while the guards dealt with the lizard men, but Chinatsu wasn't about to take any chances. She was ready to take on whoever walked through, but seeing who it was, she lowered the weapon.

"What? What do you mean it's lost?" It's not that she thought he would lie, but nothing like this had happened before. It had never gotten this bad. Clicking her tongue, she pushes for the other girl to head towards Dust so they can get out. "So now what?!"

[mithrarin]

"All we can do now is get you away from here." He'd fight the dragon and its minions if it were him and him alone. That was what he knew, after all. But when there were innocents involved...

Dust shook his head, yanking the slit open further. "The woods aren't safe. I'll come with you till I'm sure you're not in danger."

[redmare]

The younger girl steps out first, then Chinatsu follows. "We'll be fine, you should help the others."

If it's gotten bad enough for them to run, the others might be struggling too. They were young, but there were some older members who would need the help more. "Do you know where the boss is?"

[mithrarin]

Dust shook his head, teeth gritted against the frustration of it all. "There's nothing I can do. I'm sorry. The best I can do is save someone."

The scene outside was chaos, speaking to the truth of his words. Lizard-creatures swarmed through the camp, and though they hadn't been seen in the back, it was only a matter of time before they were spotted and attacked. Alone, the two girls had little hope of getting to safety.

[redmare]

The other girl pales, Chinatsu in disbelief. "What do you mean you can't? You--You're a guard aren't you! Isn't that why you're here?!"

It wasn't fair to blame it on Dust, and deep down she knew it wasn't his fault, but she was having a hard time believing there was nothing they could do.

[mithrarin]

"Yes. So I'm guarding you. If we stay, I can fight, but there's more of them than there are of me. However many I can hold back, all it takes is them getting one or two past me to you. Or I can get you two out of here, and make sure that at least two people survive -- and if every guard does that, we can have hope. Knowing that, do you want to stay?"

It made no sense. Why would the attack come in such numbers? How could so many of the lizards find some sort of profit or gain in this? Something else was happening here, something Dust couldn't see. Didn't know enough to see, probably; he was just a hired sword.

[redmare]

Chinatsu would stay and fight with him. She may not have been trained like he was, but like hell was she going down without a fight. However, it wasn't just her, and the other girl cowered behind her even more at the thought.

"Fine, fine!" She finally relents, clicking her tongue. At the very least, they could protect her.

[mithrarin]

"Take whatever you can easily carry. I don't know what we're going to have to deal with here."

Glad it was settled, Dust shoved an elbow into the slit he'd cut in the tent, nudging it open to peer out and check to make sure the coast was clear.

[redmare]

Chinatsu turns back to the other girl to urge her to grab her stuff. She had a small bag that contained some clothing, though she couldn't remember the specifics, however there was no way she could gather up all her things. This had her realizing that she never thought she would have to worry about losing them. Stuff she's collected over the years, precious things to her. How was she supposed to decide what was more important than the other in a matter of seconds?

She has no choice though, and does just that, shoving whatever she can in the bag.

[mithrarin]

Dust couldn't advise her. He traveled with his hat, his sword, and the few things he kept on his person to get by, mostly food. That hadn't changed since he joined as a guard.

"We'll have to be careful," he said, softly but with enough carrying intensity that they could hear him. "Not too far back through the trees, there's a cliff. We want to avoid getting pinned up against it..."

[redmare]

Chinatsu tries to stuff in whatever food she can in the tent, and she’s ready to go. The younger girl is ready as well, though clearly terrified at having to leave. “Where do we go then?” Chinatsu asks him as she slings her bagnover her shoulder.

[mithrarin]

"Into the trees. As far enough away as we need to, to be safe. Hopefully that isn't too far and they don't go hunting for escapees in the woods..."

If not, they had a run ahead of them.

Dust stepped out first, quickly surveying the scene, before turning to motion the pair of them out in turn.

[redmare]

Chinatsu follows after him, making sure the youngest one is right behind her. This was the first time they stepped out the tent since the whole thing started, so it was their first time seeing how their camp was decimated.

Just this morning people were laughing, practicing their performances, playing music. “Why..why would they do this...?”

It’s not like they had that much money on them. What could they gain from so much destruction?

[mithrarin]

"I don't know the answer to that. I'm sorry."

For a number of reasons. Fighting them would be easier if he could control their objective or address their underlying motives.

Dust crept along quietly, still at full alert as they drew closer to the edge of the camp, where the trees would hopefully provide some measure of safety.

[redmare]

The girls kept close to him, walking as quietly as possible. Then there was a rustling from another tent. Could it be another troupe member?

Before they could celebrate, a reptilian head peeked out, spotting them immediately.

[mithrarin]

"Run!" Dust said, turning to face the creature head-on. So much for subtlety! He took a couple of skipping steps sideways to make sure they kept moving, so he could stay between them and the beast.

[redmare]

They bolt, running as fast as they can. Looking back, they could see the creature calling to its comrades, their pursuers growing in number.

They manage to make it into the woods, but now it was even more challenging to run on the uneven terrain. One of the lizardmen is running up from the side, and another surprises them by cutting them at the front. Chinatsu tries to keep in front of the younger troupe member, but it was starting to look like they were surrounded.

[mithrarin]

Good, they were moving. Dust ran alongside them, but -- damn! How many of these creatures were there!

In a blur of movement, Dust dove past the two of them and came up with his sword swinging. No mercy or hesitation as he cut the beast down, freeing their path to keep running even as he turned to fend off a blow from behind.

[redmare]

When the guard came up in their defense, Chinatsu started to back up, but failed to notice the other lizarsmen that appeared. There was a scream from behind her as the other girl is grabbed, but Chinatsu immediately tries to pull her back.

“LET HER GO!,” she yells, bur another grabs her arms from behind. Chinatsu glares at him, thrashing in his hold and attempting to kick him. She had to quickly break free, because the other lizardman was taking the other girl away. “GIVE HER BACK!” With how she was fighting him off, her own capture was having more difficulty pulling her away.

[mithrarin]

"Damn it!" No! He wasn't going to let this happen!

Dust all but threw himself at the lizardman, sword whirling around him in a vortex that threw the creature off-balance just in time for Dust's blade to take it in the chest. "Come on!" he shouted, catching Chinatsu's hand to all but haul her after the one fleeing with the other girl.

[redmare]

Chinatsu falls forward suddenly, realizing she’s free. Next thing she knows, someone is tagging her by the hand. She runs as fast as she can, but it feels like they're getting further away, and closer to back where they came from. Chances were there were more lizardmen waiting at that end, but they couldn’t just give up yet!

The other lizardmen from earlier appeared a short distance away on either side of them. It almost felt like they were being herded...

[mithrarin]

Dust slowed slightly, recognizing the appalling futility of it all. Damn it! He hadn't been fast enough! He just --

His hand trembled slightly in hers, fingers briefly flexing.

"If I'm going to save you... if I'm going to save anyone, we need to run."

[redmare]

“What—?” Surely he didn’t mean...

“We can’t leave her!,” Chinatsu protests.

[mithrarin]

Her response, no matter how expected, hit low and hard, making him wince and clench his teeth. "Do you see any way we can help? I can't keep you safe against this many!"

[redmare]

"Then save her!" It may not be a reasonable demand, but at that moment Chinatsu couldn't think about what was realistic. The other lizard soldiers were starting to close in, giving them mere seconds to decide on what to do.