Age of Retribution Part III: Shards of Eternity

[DeadJim]

As the frontal attacker reached Marliea their blades clashed and she forced his blade to the side, then kicked him in the face while flipping herself around vertically. She deflected the blade of the thief to the right while the thief to the left swung his blade for her side. She grabbed his arm and spun herself towards him in the direction of his swing. She threw him to the ground and stuck one of her swords in his arm, pinning him to the ground temporarily.


She deflected the blade of the other thief again, and then attacked him with hers, trying to bring herself as close to him as possible. The face-kicked thief then ran to her right side with another attack that she ducked while kicking him in the gut. As he fell to the ground she again struck the blade of the other thief, this time getting within arms length of him. She then grabbed his shirt and spun him around before stabbing him in the back.


As he fell the ground the face/gut-kicked thief was beginning to stand up. She dashed towards him, kicked the sword out of his hand before grabbing his neck and rapidly snapping it. The thief she had pinned down had gotten the sword out of his arm and was then holding it along with his sword. As he looked at her she charged at him, slid to the side of him while grabbing his legs, knocking him back to the ground. They both quickly stood up again, and he began to swing wildly at her, while she ducked every swipe. As he did this she rapidly spun and grabbed both of his wrists, and pinned him to a tree, with his hands crossed at his neck. She then yanked, his arms downward, slitting his throat with both blades.

[Shawnex]

Wondu dodged to the right and quickly slipped behind one of the thieves and kicked his butt so hard that it made him crashed into the other. He then immediately charged at them and kicked one of the thieves' weapon out of his hand. But the other rolled back and charged back to him. Wondu quickly defended himself and they continued fighting while the other got up and charged towards him as well. Meanwhile, the cobra finished the one thief after he rapped around his neck choked him. He then slithered back to his basket, but Wondu pushed one of the thieves and made him land on the cobra. The thief got back up again, but now that the cobra was ticked off because of that thief landing on him, he attacked him as well. 

[Tyler294]

"They're dying in there!" one two remaining bandits blurted, hearing continuing clashes of weapons and dying screams of the thieves.

"Chief, we need to get you out of here!" the other said.

Alapo didn't need to be told twice, as he was already rushing toward where the gang's horses were tethered. His two guards were not far behind, and soon enough all three were mounted. As they turned to face the ridge leading toward the desert and away from the oasis, they saw a lone man on a horse silhouetted against the moonlight.

"Who is he?" one of the bandits asked nervously.

"He's one man!" Alapo snapped, "Kill him!"

The two thieves drew their weapons and exchanged brief glances at one-another, before riding toward the man on the ridge to attack him. Tarek, being that man on the ridge, began to ride down toward them in response, his own sword already in-hand.

When the two were barely twenty yards from one-another, Tarek raised his hand with gauntlet on it and pointed toward bandit on his left. Electricity began to crackle as lighting pulsed through Tarek's gauntlet and the arm inside. Neither bandit had any chance to hesitate before a bolt of lighting shot forth from Tarek's hand and struck the man he was pointing at, violently throwing him from his horse.

Both horses panicked and bucked into the air, resulting in the second thief also being thrown from his saddle. The horses then galloped away in haste, leaving that bandit fumbling on the ground to find his weapon. No sooner had the thief recovered his sword, stood up, and turned to face Tarek, than his skull was split in two by a vicious downward slash from Tarek's own blade.

With the two bandits dead or dying, Tarek continued straight toward Alapo, who had remained in-place to observe what would happen between them. But with that confrontation over, it was now the bandit chieftain's turn to fight...

[DeadJim]

Marliea removed her other sword from the back of one of thieves, before strolling over to Wondu.

"Do you need help?" She asked as she leaned against a tree.

[Shawnex]

"Funny you would offer to help someone in battle, especially since you're a woman." Wondu stated while fighting one of the thieves.

He pushed him out of the way and looked at the rest of the thieves that were lying down. It was all done by Marlia.

"Goodness Gracious!" he exclaimed.

The cobra was still fighting the other thief by biting him and wrapping around his neck.

[Tyler294]

As Tarek was nearing Alapo, the bandit leader suddenly raised both his arms and out from his palms shot a blast of water that struck the charging bounty hunter in the chest and knocked him off his horse. Deciding to try and finish this attacker off rather than run, Alapo charged with his horse, intent on finishing Tarek the same way Tarek had finished the bandit a moment before. Rather than stand-up, however; Tarek rolled aside as the horse came upon him, while sweeping out with his sword.

The sword strike cut the poor horse's two front legs out from under it, causing the animal to lurch forward and collapse to the ground in a heap. Alapo struggled a moment to free himself from the saddle, which gave Tarek enough time to get back to his feet himself. The bandit leader eventually freed himself of his wounded steed, then drew out his scimitar and faced the now advancing Tarek. The two locked eyes as they raised their blades in preparation for their duel. It was during this time that both noticed the tree grove had gone silent...

But they soon had no time to worry about that as their swords clashed for the first time. Tarek launched a series of skilled attacks, but Alapo showed he was a competent swordsman himself and deflected or blocked every blow. The offensive changed twice, but neither man was gaining any advantage on the other as they battled their way around the camp.

[DeadJim]

As Wondu pushed the thief away that he was fighting, Marliea casually ran one of her blades through his back.

"Why don't we go check on the boss." She said as she threw the corpse to the ground.

[Shawnex]

Wondu looked puzzled after he saw Marlia finished the thief he was fighting.

"Uh...okay." he responded before covering his mouth with his hand.

The cobra finished the other thief, just as he did to his first.

"One of these days-s-s." he muttered, "It's one of these days-s-s that I have to fight because of that tune."

He slithered back to his basket and put the lid on with his tail.

[DeadJim]

Marliea motioned for him to follow her as they headed towards the camp.

[Tyler294]

Tarek now had the advantage and was working Alapo back toward the center of the oasis. The bounty hunter managed to land a couple shallow cuts on the unarmored bandit chief, further tilting the scales in his favor. In desperation, Alapo kicked at Tarek's chest, causing him to stumble back a bit. The separation was all the desert marauder needed as he raised his arms again and fired a steady stream of water at Tarek again.

But this time, Tarek was ready. As the water shot toward him, he extended his left hand and charged it with lighting. The water struck his hand first, contacting the electric energy and making the water an immediate conduit. Alapo barely had time to curse at his mistake before the electric wave traveled through the water stream right back into his own body.

"GAGAAHHUHUHUHUH!" he cried as he fell to the ground, convulsing in shock.

Tarek exhaled deeply, before twirling his sword around a few times as he approached Alapo. But the bandit leader was a tougher man than the one Tarek had fried earlier, and he was able to recover and tried to reach for his sword. Tried.

"Aah!" Alapo gasped, as Tarek's boot stomped down on his arm, causing a sickening crunch.

Tarek then kicked the bandit leader in the face and turned him over on his back, before poking his throat with the point of his sword. Around Alapo's neck was a string necklace, around which hung a circular pendant that looked like it could store something inside. Tarek's blade soon was used to lift the object away from Alapo's throat.

"How is it a wasteland rat like came by something like this?" Tarek wondered aloud.

[DeadJim]

Marliea and Wondu approached as Tarek stood over Alapo; they hadn't seen any of the previous fight.

"Looks like you've been having fun." She said as she sheathed her swords.

[Tyler294]

"It is done, in any case." Tarek shrugged at Marlia.

He then cut the string on Alapo's pendant, then picked up the item and put it in one of his pouches.

"So, you going to kill me now?" Alapo spat.

"Of course not; you're going to the Corbaine family. They'll kill you later." Tarek replied.

"What? NO!" Alapo tried to stand up, only for Tarek to smash him in the jaw with his gauntlet and send him back to the dirt unconscious.

[DeadJim]

Marliea crossed her arms and looked around, "I still think this was too easy."

[Shawnex]

"The easier the battle is, the less chance of any of us getting killed." Wondu said.

[Tyler294]

"Glad you approve." Tarek replied to them both dryly.

He jogged over to recover his dark-color horse, then returned to where Alapo was lying on the ground. Pulling a rope off of the saddle, he proceeded to tie up the prisoner.

"The Corbaine's have an agent in the village of Azuz, about a day's journey east of here." Tarek explained to the two, "They will pay us the bounty there and will be on our way. If you two are interested in greater challenges and fortunes from there, you can continue on with me."

[DeadJim]

"I thought this was going to be a challenge." Marliea grumbled under her breath as she followed Tarek.

[Tyler294]

"I made no guarantees." Tarek answered as he picked up Alapo and hoisted him over one of the bandit horses that was mulling around nearby, "We are done here, unless you wish to loot the corpses."

He brought the horse with Alapo on it back over to his own horse, then mounted, while still holding the reigns of the other horse in order to lead it with him.

[Shawnex]

Wondu had gone through all the dead, collecting their money bags and putting them in his handbag.

"May your souls rest in peace." he whispered quietly to the bandits, though he was not a priest, he just said it on his own.

[DeadJim]

Marliea just shook her head while polishing her blades.

[Tyler294]

Once that was done, the group departed from the now empty camp and made for the town of Azuz. They had to rest and sleep at some point during the night, but eventually they arrived at the town by noon of the the next day.

Now in the town, Tarek brought them all to what appeared to be a large gambling establishment. Leaving Wondu and Marlia to guard the now conscious Alapo outside, Tarek entered the casino and made his way toward the bar. All forms of scum and villainy surrounded him as he weaved through crowds of drinkers and around tables of gamblers. Though the place was lively and loud, he was able to tune it all out as he reached the bar without incident.

"What'll ya have?" the bartender asked in a forced friendly tone.

"I need to talk to the manager." Tarek replied, while at the same time tossing a metal token over to the barkeep.

The response was a glance at the token, then a nod, before the man disappeared into the back. After a few moments, the bartender returned and resumed his normal spot, while a much larger man in more elaborate clothes emerged behind him. The new arrival had a woman on his left arm and a smoke stick in his right hand, while at his side hung a gold-trimmed sword and sheath.

"What'ye be needin'?" the apparent manager asked in a thick Eastport accent.

"I have a bounty outside." Tarek hiked a finger over his shoulder, "And I aim to collect."

"Oy..." the manager sighed, "Well, let's be havin' a look at 'em."

The manager summoned a couple of his bouncers to join them, then the whole group went outside. Once they reached were Marlia, Wondu and the captive Alapo were waiting, the manager stepped up and stared at Alapo intently.

"Aye, that be him." he finally nodded.

At Tarek's request, the reward was divided into three equal bags of coins, then given to him. The bouncers led the now terrified bandit leader away, while the manager bid Tarek a good day and returned to the casino. With all the other people now gone, Tarek tossed a bag at each of his hired hands.

"This job is done. If you're still interested, the next not far away, relatively speaking."

[DeadJim]

"Another bounty?" Marliea asked while examining the town.

[Tyler294]

"No." Tarek answered, "I managed to acquire a map to a tomb in the Cadmium badlands. There's an artifact we need to acquire there, but the tomb is no doubt filled with other valuables as well."

He cast a glance to either side of himself as he spoke, in case anyone was listening in.

"The tombs out there in the mountains tend to have a lot of traps or wild beasts in them, depending on their age and structural integrity. Not to mention occasional tomb raiders. One way or another, we'll likely run into some form of... challenge."

[DeadJim]

"That's not a great guarantee," Marliea said as she looked at him suspiciously, "but intriguing enough."

[Shawnex]

"Actually Marlia," interrupted Wondu, "It does sound interesting to me. What kind of artifact will you be looking for, Tarek?"

[Tyler294]

"It's a fragment of a larger artifact, really. You needn't worry too much about it." Tarek replied dismissively, "You two will primarily be along to watch for traps or kill anyone or anything that tries to interfere with us."