02-21-2018, 01:54 PM
Quote:Partial overlap with China's post
Dane was dragged to the side, still pinned against the wall while half of the bar converged around Afrátos. "Your pet attacked us," one of the women next to him spoke, toying with a pair of sharp knives while her male friend held Dane in place. "We had no choice but to kill him."
Dane could only smirk inside. She knew how to play this game. Heck, Dane would have stated a similar lie in her place, watching his prey crumple was always so satisfying. Yet, as submissive and scared as he looked, Dane's muscles were relaxed and he was prepared to tense them at any moment - his mind and magic steeled and ready to strike out. "T-that's a lie." He kept up the act, waiting and trusting the beast's china claws. Just one swing, that was all it needed to do. He could handle it from there easily.
It delivered, sharp ceramics tearing through the gut of perhaps the burliest man in the room. The hand around his neck relaxed, and Dane could finally let out his suppressed laughter, flicking his shortsword into his hand and driving it upwards into the nearest man's neck. A fraction of a second later he was behind the other nearby bloke, his longsword already in his hand and his short sword stabbing perfectly into the man's heart.
That left the two women - Afrátos seemed to be faring well so he didn't intervene, as easy as it would have been to stab his aggressors in the back. He felt somewhat disappointed to only have two targets left already, one of which was already starting to flee. Hefting his longer blade, Dane plunged it straight through her back of her neck, only to notice his arrogance had left him open to knife girl. He dodged quickly to the side, her daggers slicing through the air and barely missing his skin. With a smirk, he pulled his sword out and flicked some of the blood in knife-girl's direction, already swinging both his swords swiftly and precisely towards the weak points in her guard.
She surprised him, succeeding in dodging and avoiding both, but his weapons had more reach. It was then that a horrible animalistic screech echoed throughout the tavern. Sparing it a quick glance, Dane returned his focus back to the fight at hand.
Fuck.
Before that, the normal yells and violence could be dismissed by an average passerby - one on the main path anyway. But that, the noise Afrátos was making, was sure to bring down half the guard. Dane really needed to step up his game - although a bounty wasn't so bad, that wasn't the point of this. He sped up, exerting himself a little more and forcing the woman to do the same. In all honesty, she was pretty good. Just, not good enough. Kicking out, he pushed her back, focusing for a moment and leaving a slightly hidden but purposeful gap in his guard - something a novice wouldn't spot, yet something the woman clearly would - unable to see the trap.
She lashed out, but Dane retaliated. In her new proximity, it was too late to avoid his strike. All of his mana channelled through his arms to enhance the speed and strength of the blow. His longsword cleaved straight through her skull, severing her brain from her body and shattering the bone. It was the best shot he'd had at finishing this quickly - give her a risky opening to attack him, and strike back when she did. Yet, as good as the plan was, it did come with a slight flaw. She'd left a parting gift, a long thin slash across his chest, her dagger easily cut through his weakened skin like butter. If he'd delayed barely a fraction of a second longer, he'd be dead.
But he didn't - because he was better than her. With a shrug, he prowled over towards Afrátos's last pray, dashing to the side and slicing its throat as it tried to flee. The whole encounter had lasted longer than planned, and he could already hear approaching shouts outside. Ideally, he'd have gotten the china beast to eat all the bodies - but without any witnesses, they'd probably be fine, they just had to get out of the place quickly. Dane voiced his opinion and focused for a moment before grabbing Afrátos and teleporting the duo to an alleyway he remembered passing. Luckily, they ended up in the right place - if Dane hadn't estimated the distance and direction of the location correctly they could have ended up squashed inside a wall.
He crouched, then gripped the ceramic beast, hoisting it onto his back and being careful to avoid its claws; he had to manually hold its wrists instead of letting it grip by itself.
Footsteps. Hard soles against the cobbled ground. And some were heading his way. Instinctively, Dane clicked his fingers, sending a 'ping' ricocheting off the narrow walls and around a bend away from him, aiming to draw any attention away from him and Afrátos for a few moments. He'd never killed that many people at once before in such a short timespan, although usually he didn't have the ability to teleport away quickly.
Focusing his magic, he wrapped it around him and his payload, shielding them from sight. Hopefully, no one would be able to detect them - any life signatures they gave off would be incredibly weak, especially with Dane actively suppressing them. But, he didn't want to take too many risks.
He reached out with his magic, silently, looking around for a destination. Breakthroughs were often made in combat, but it was annoying when one occurred right at the end - after it would have been useful. If he overloaded what mana he has just right, he could drastically speed up his teleports - like how he's escaped the tavern so quickly. Shrugging lightly and securing the shaking china on his back, he figured now was as good a time as any to test out his new discovery, regardless of the regrettable impact on Afrátos. It looked like it would puke if it could, but the void inside it always seemed to be empty, regardless of how much it consumed. At least, that's what it looked like through the cracks.
...Clownpiece was gonna be so mad.
As his mind talked to itself just like always, he spotted a far away roof, just within range. Still hidden from sight, he merely blinked when bam. He was there. Already. No focus. No linking locations. Just an instinctive 'blink'. He panted a little bit before executing another, and then another, and then another. He was already a good three hundred metres from the alleyway, and only a few seconds had passed. Without focusing, he tried to repeat the action, only for nothing to happen. His breaths were laboured, each teleport taking a toll on both him and Afrátos.
With another light shrug, he closed his eyes, restoring the active mana and reconfiguring his mindset. That did the trick. And, just as with the first time, it allowed for five quick, soundless, hidden teleports. Legs shaking, he burned through his mana pool, surprised at how far it was taking him. But, fatigue and mana were temporary - and he wanted to know his limits - so he pushed on, uncaring for the semi-conscious chattering mess he was carrying.
By the time his momentum faltered, he was already at the city exit, by the gate. How far had he gone? Almost a mile? He coughed, then silently hopped off the last roof, dropping Afrátos on the ground once he'd landed. Magic waning, his cloak of stealth faded from his body, and Clownpiece's pet's. Slumping and rubbing his head, he breathed deeply. Sprinting the whole distance would have been easier, but could he sprint a mile in under half a minute? Nope.
Idly, he flipped out his phone, then laughed reading a message from Clownpiece. A childlike crayon drawing expanded to fill the screen. A monster thing? His artist representation wasn't much better, but he did wonder if she summoned crayons just for that or already had them with her. Regardless, he fired one back, then got to work making a makeshift bandage after tearing off part of his shirt.
Picking himself up, he dragged Afrátos out of the alley they'd landed in, making a point of standing out in the open by the gate while he waited for his friends to arrive. He still had to manage his breathing, and felt a bit lightheaded, but managed to maintain a good enough posture that no one would notice. At least, if anything, he was a master at running away. This 'monster' thing wouldn't stand a chance.
Quote:Dane spent 4 more sp (0/5 sp remaining) to use T1SU - Blink to teleport lots of times in quick succession (4 teleports left from China's post, then 20 more in this post - all 80m range). He's also pretty tired (bit of an understatement). And Dane has taken a minor bit of damage. China has taken a bit more. They're probably be chill in a couple of hours though. And have definitely got too far away from the tavern to be considered suspects for the murders there.