a bounty worth death? (Closed to Izvilvin.)

[Camella]

This is the final chapter in Camella's struggle to get the bounty on Izvilvin. Chapter one was called 'The hunt'. It can be found here: http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?t=2112

Chapter two was called 'Deadly Persistance' It can be found here: http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?t=2750

Camella had been real hesitant about going after Izvilvin again. She had made a promise from last time they met that when she returned, she would kill 190 citizens of the town before coming for him. She always kept her promises, but up until now, she had not had the courage, ability, or heart to pull off the task. However, recent events had changed all of this. She knew exactly what she had to do.

Camella headed into Fallien without much of a care. It would soon be a city of blood. It had been nearly 5 months since she had last graced these streets, so most of the townspeople had forgotten who she was. The few that remembered her were quick to die by her blade.

"1, 2, 3, 4... 13" Camella counted to herself.

She wanted to kill exactly 190. No more, No less.

Camella headed into the medical center. If she was going to kill 177 more citizens, her best bet would be to attack people who couldn't defend themselves. It was the middle of the night, so Camella had no problem getting in unnoticed. Her first order of business was to kill the nurses and healers since they could defend themselves. She killed the 5 on the first floor by stabbing them while they slept. She then went on to kill the 62 patients on the first floor in the same manner.

The last one had heard a disturbance and had enough time to call for security before getting his throat slit. This was a problem that Camella hadn't counted on. She still needed to kill 110 more. She headed to the second floor. A few guards rushed in. Camella recognized one of them as one of the guards that had nearly caught her last time.

"Oh Fuck. You are that assassin, aren't you?" The guard said when she saw Camella.

"You got it. When you reach hell, tell Satan I said hi." Camella replied with an evil smirk.

The guard turned to one of her soldiers. "Get backup, Now!!!"

Camella slashed off her head as soon as she spoke and threw a dagger into the back of the neck of the soldier, before he made it out the door. She jumped backwards and threw 2 more daggers to eliminate the other two guards. After grabbing the three thrown daggers, she continued up the stairs.

The next floor seemed to be devoid of healers, so camella went straight to work killing the 75 patients there. It wasn't as easy as the first floor, because now everyone had been alerted to her presence, but she managed to kill them without too much trouble.

"31 more." Camella said to herself as she started to leave. Suddenly Camella felt a sharp pain in her left shoulder as one oft the nurses shot her with a bow and arrow she had pulled out of who knows where.

"Excuse me, you missed my heart." Camella said as she rushed in and slashed her head off in rage.

On the 3rd floor, Camella saw the rest of the nurses and healers hiding off in a locked room. Taking pity on them, she moved into the room where the patients were and killed 30 of them, fulfilling her quota. Before she left, though, Camella used her last victim's blood to spell out the word "IZVILVIN" on the floor and all four walls.

As she was leaving, she decided to make one last stop. She pulled the arrow out of her arm and cut an opening in the locked doorway big enough for her to get through.

"One of you had better heal this, or else you all will die!!!" Camella yelled.

Needless to say, that the wound got healed. Camella exited the room, turned invisible, and ran out the door. She headed into the sewer system and waited for morning to arrive. When it did, she would continue to hunt for Izvilvin.

[Izvilvin]

The sun of the Fallien desert rose especially early, and with it came the townspeople of Irrakam, who were among the most productive of Althanas’ people. By the time the bodies were discovered, it was early morning. Irrakam awoke to the screams of a wife who had come to check on her ailing husband, only to witness the remains of the night’s massacre. When she stumbled out of the door, the woman had been changed forever – she would never smile again.

Izvilvin was always among the first awake on the island, and had been taking his morning walk around the perimeter of Jya’s Keep as he did every morning. Each step brought the sun higher, and it always lifted the Drow’s spirit for the day ahead. Even when he paused before Palmer’s greatsword, shoved deep in the dirt atop a grassy hill behind the keep, and recalled his two fallen friends, Izvilvin felt no sorrow. He had generations left to live, but knowing he’d never forget them made him feel real.

The woman’s scream pierced the sky, so quiet was the island. Izvilvin heard her clearly, his acute hearing picking up the sound even from so far away. He pulled himself away from the grave and ran as quickly as he could around the keep, bolting toward the town. If a squad of harpies had attacked, he would be one of few soldiers awake enough to deal with the threat.

His steps slowed as he neared the center of town, where a crowd had gathered. Voices were chattering, voices that wavered in an out of pitch, clearly fearful. So entranced were they that Izvilvin was not noticed until he was within a few feet. The first person to see him was an olive-skinned man with a shallow beard, dark curly hair running down his face to his chin. When their eyes met, the human turned quickly away.

Before the Drow could question it, a woman broke off from the pack and walked up to him, strangely calm despite the look in her eyes. She was distraught, eyes dancing in the light of the sun. Anyone could have seen she was frightened, though of what, Izvilvin was anxious to know. “Sir,” she said tentatively, carefully enunciating. “You should go inside.”

Izvilvin did so, and caught the scent of blood as soon as he entered. The medical center was a three-story building with a central hall on each floor, with branching rooms which housed patients and facilities. The main hall on the bottom level had streaks of blood on the floor, footprints stuck to the marble. He rushed from room to room, stopping only for a moment within each to see the bodies of the slain. Everywhere he went he saw death, not one breathing form.

On the third floor he found a closed door with a wide whole cut out of it. Looking at it, Izvilvin wondered how much time it must have taken to carve, considering how small the cuts were. If a typical blade did it, it must have taken hours, he thought. More interesting was what he found within: two men and four women, huddled together in the corner with their eyes trained on the door. Izvilvin began to step inside when two of them screamed. Deep breaths accompanying him, the Drow backed off and carried on with his inspection.

The final room he inspected was at the back of the top floor. His name was written in blood across the floor and walls, in the common tongue. A sick, heavy feeling came over his gut, the realization that this all had to do with him, and he left the medical center.

Outside, Izvilvin felt cold despite the sun. Was this Step’s doing? It didn’t make any sense if it was, considering that he’d done everything asked of him. He hadn’t relayed any information back concerning Fallien and the Jya, however, for his loyalties had changed. That didn’t justify such a response from the organization.

So what was it?

“Izvilvin,” called someone from the group ahead, who were still gathered in the square. It was a young woman of perhaps thirty, with dark hair and tanned skin that was typical of the desert folk. “We’re frightened. We trust you, but we fear for our lives. How can we be safe with such things happening?”

The Drow didn’t know how to react. “I will do something,” was all he could say. How someone so menacing could cross the river to Irrakam without getting the permission of the guards of the Outlander’s Quarters, he didn’t know. Better yet, how did the city guards not notice?

The day passed by slowly, but by the time late afternoon came, there were several posters about the town. Each had no more than two sentences written upon them, with no pictures or indications of any kind.

“I will be outside of the city gate for the night, by the west end of the river. Settle your business with me there, forever, and begone. – Izvilvin.”

He was worried about spectators, but the Jya assured him there would be guards to keep the citizens safe. When nighttime came, he was where he was supposed to be, weapons at his belt. His eyes and ears were attuned to everything around him.

[Camella]

Camella came out of hiding and started to search the streets. She had overslept, so it was nighttime when she started searching for her target. There was quite the commotion on the street even at this hour, making it tough to walk around unnoticed, but Camella managed to do this by walking around in the back alleys. Eventually she found Izvilvin just outside of town.

"So, you came? How many soldiers are waiting to take me out this time? 10? 20?50?" Camella said, hoping that Izvilvin was alone this time. Camella waited for a while, Studying her surroundings. There were very few hiding spots. At most there was enough room for 10-20 soldiers to hide.

Camella pulled out two of her daggers and spun them around in her hands. "So, you ready? Cause here I come."

She rushed in and was about to slash at Izvilvin's neck, but when she got close, she jumped over his head and attempted to slash him from behind. She knew her mistake from the other two times she attempted to get Izvilvin's head was turning invisible too early in the battle, and she was not about to make the same mistake again. She had depended way too much on her invisibility and color-changing skills as of late. It was time for her to mix it up and show her true skill.

[Izvilvin]

The night was silent, save for the calming wash of the River Attireyi against the side of Irrakam. Izvilvin was in the calm zone he generally found himself in before an important fight. Camella couldn’t be allowed to kill a Fallienite again, it was as simple as that.

He heard her approach long before she spoke, but didn’t turn from the horizon. He could still see the orange light of the sun as it dove behind the waves of sand. The moon was already high and bright in the sky.

“No soldiers,” he said as he turned to face her. Seeing her wretched face put a wrathful scowl on his face, an expression so foreign to him that any of his friends would have been afraid of it. “Dosst vlos orn kri'sha l' xar'zith velve d' ussta abbil,” he growled.

Icicle was drawn into his right hand, the mist of the blue blade licking up like steam from a pot. In his left he drew a sai. A hundred and ninety dead men and women were in his memory, dead on the floor of medical centre. Camella would get no more chances.

Izvilvin didn’t bother to fall into a stance as Camella rushed him. He was relaxed and calm, feeling the battle before it even begun.

Her agility was amazing, perhaps inhuman. The Drow had never seen a humanoid jump so high, especially in sand. He ducked slightly and watched as she soared, twisting in the air to somehow maintain her footing upon landing. She slashed at him while he was still facing away. Like a participant in some beautiful dance he spun, white hair whipping about his head. Icicle slapped Camella’s dagger aside expertly, and he stepped into her stance to bring himself close. He reversed the grip on his sai and put all his strength into a quick, driving stab toward the side of her body. Fueled by his anger, the strike would have been strong enough to break between Camella’s ribs and potentially pierce her heart – if she had one.

The beauty of Izvilvin’s fighting was that though he was angry, every movement he made was as composed and graceful as the ones he made when he wasn’t emotional. The emotion merely fueled him, putting him in a position to end Camella’s murderous ways forever.

[Camella]

Camella smiled as her attack got blocked. She really didn't want it to be that easy at this point. She didn't want it to all end in one attack this time, when every other time she fought him he had matched her move for move. She wanted him in top form so that she had something to brag about when she finally beat him. If she had managed to hit him with her first attack, it would have thrown her off her game. She was thrown off her game for a bit because of the sand lowering the height of her jump somewhat, but she had fought Izvilvin in these conditions at least once before, so it really didn't bother her too much.

As Camella landed, she saw Izvilvin attacking her from the side. She quickly ducked underneath the strike and went for a fake sweep kick. Camella knew all to well that if she had really done a sweep kick, her foe would have more than enough time to counter-attack for the kill, so halfway through the kick, she rolled around to his left side and to her feet attacking with a high slash and a low slash at the same time. Her reasoning was simple, it would be easy for Izvilvin to block one of the attacks, but she doubted that he would have the time to bring the blue blade in his right hand around in time to block the other. Even if he did block both of the strikes, it would be hard for him to counter-attack seeing as how both his hands would have to be used to block her attacks. Camella was still wary, though. She had underestimated this foe twice already. She was not going to do it again.

[Izvilvin]

Izvilvin followed through with the strike, bringing his arm around and flipping his sai back into a forward grip. He spread his feet apart in the sand to bring himself lower and to grant more balance to his stance, preparing to standoff with Camella face-to-face.

Her kick came in low, and the Drow prepared to meet it with a steady leg, putting all of his weight on it to overpower and stifle the sweep. It was a feint, however, and a clever one at that. Camella rose with great speed and slashed from both the left and right, one dagger high and one low, having rolled to Izvilvin’s left. He squared off with her, and with speed borne of his determination, pulled Icicle up to meet her high blade, lifting it even higher and over their heads. At the same time, his opposite hand caught the dagger between the left and main prongs of his sai. With a twist, the Drow directed her hand aside and away from his body.

Camella, the assassin, was not high in her stance, but was around Izvilvin’s waist level in order to grant her reach both high and low. Without giving her a moment to recover – or himself, for that matter – Izvilvin abandoned the ground and threw his right foot forward in a devastating kick aimed for the side of Camella’s head.

The attack brought him to the sand, but was swift enough that it might have caught her off guard. If not, they were both low and Izvilvin would have an opportunity to rise before being capitalized upon. It was a risk he, in his aggression, did not have a problem taking.

[Camella]

The kick hit Camella hard, sending her to the ground. She hadn't expected it to be easy though, and as such, she was able to get right back to her feet. Izvilvin was just as good as she remembered, if not better, but she hadn't come all this way just to fail. She stared at him, looking for a weakness, but found nothing.

Camella charged towards Izvilvin again. With her trusty blades in hand, Camella attempted make a slash at her opponent's knees. She needed to slow him down, and that was the quickest way to do it in her mind. She knew that he could easily counter-attack her, but she was ready to dodge him at a moment's notice.

Sorry about the short post. I promise to make the next post longer.

[Izvilvin]

The kick connected, and Izvilvin hit the sand with some satisfaction. Amazingly, Camella was already moving to rise. Finding footholds in the sand, the Drow rose as well, and was quickly low in a defensive stance.

The woman approached with speed and brought her attack low. Seeing it clearly, Izvilvin met the dagger with Icicle, halting the blade before it came close. As he slid his sword along the dagger, it left a thin layer of ice upon the metal. Before retracting his sword, the Drow flicked it forward in a quick attempt to nick at Camella’s face, more as a way to deter her than anything else.

He pressed onward, swinging Icicle high for the very top of her head. Expected a duck, Izvilvin brought his opposite foot up through the sand, kicking a sea of sand toward Camella’s face in an effort to temporarily blind her.

[Camella]

Camella looked on in surprise as part of her blade got an icy new layer. Her opponent's sword was certainly more than it seemed. Her foe managed to nick her face immediately afterwards, but it wasn't enough to make her lose focus for even a second. There was something else that was able to distract her from the fight, though.


She could have sworn that she saw some onlookers off in the distance, but when she turned her head to check it out, there was nothing. By the time she turned back to Izvilvin, she had almost no time to dodge his attack. She had little choice but to block it at this point, and when she saw that he had kicked sand at chest level, she was happy she hadn't ducked.

Suddenly she saw four figures off in the distance. They appeared to be talking with each other while they were watching the fight. Camella could tell that they were not Izvilvin's soldier's, but she couldn't figure out much more than that at the moment. For instance, She was unable to figure out that they were bounty hunters like her. She was also unable to see that three were male and one was female. Heck, she couldn't even hear what they were saying to each other. If she could, though, this is what she would have heard.

"My, my. Luck does appear to be on our side today. Two wanted people in one place, and they appear to be fighting each other, let's take them out."

"Hold on, Lily. Let them fight it out. Whoever emerges victorious will be too weak to fight all of us off."

"Keep it down you two, I think she noticed us."

"We can't have that. I will take her down with one arrow."

"I said no, Lily. These two are both considered extremely dangerous threats, able to take on a whole army with ease."

"Fine, Max. Have it your way, but If she takes one step towards us, I will fire."

"By the way, you sure this is the right woman? She looks weak."

"Appearances can be deceiving, Gato."

"I said keep it down"

"Shut up, Monty."


Camella made a mental note of where the mysterious people were as she attempted to kick Izvilvin in the kneecap, followed by a slash to Izvilin's chest.

"Take that."

[Izvilvin]

Despite being momentarily distracted, Camella was able to block Icicle’s heavy strike with her dagger. Izvilvin couldn’t remember her being so capable the last time they fought, so it came as a bit of a surprise to him. Despite it, he kept his composure, knowing that she couldn’t keep up with his pace forever. Considering that Izvilvin had been fighting in the sinking sands for over a year now, and Camella lacked that experience, having to pull her feet from the sand would surely tug at her energy reserves.

Even if not, the Drow didn’t doubt his prowess. He was a fighter on a separate level than most, had slain stronger warriors more powerful than kings. Izvilvin had to keep his mindset focused on such things, if he wanted to end this.

He had one advantage, and that was his awareness to the four figures far behind him. He couldn’t understand them, but their tones told him that they were interested in the fight that was going on. Izvilvin couldn’t imagine that Camella could hear them, unless she possessed hearing on his level. Few humans did.

The Drow figured he had some time before the people behind him made their move, if they made one at all. He kept an ear focused on them, but his eyes locked onto Camella, determined as they ever were.

Her kick came in fast, but a twist of Izvilvin’s leg sent her foot flying just past his knee. Her dagger came in quickly after, but the Drow turned into the strike, moving past her hand and catching the woman’s arm between his side and bicep. He squeezed hard, trying to keep her close. His free hand, gripping Icicle, came in as hard and as quickly as he could manage, driving for her side.

He released her quickly afterward, pushing himself away from her daggers in order to keep the range advantage he had. He slashed once as he separated, for her neck, then feel into a defensive stance once more.

Icicle granted him range, but Izvilvin didn’t like the way the fight was going. Despite being short, the sword some heavy and cumbersome at times. He sheathed it and drew a matching sai, planning on engaging Camella in her own close-range battle style. Izvilvin was confident that his was better.

Behind him, the bounty hunters were chatting again. Izvilvin decided to pretend that he couldn’t hear them as clearly as his Drow ears allowed him to.

[Camella]

The battle didn't seem to be going too well for Camella at all. Her foe was a bit slow on the draw, but he still had the range advantage. She had seen what the sword did to her daggers earlier and she was afraid to find out what effect it would have on her. Now he had her at his mercy, after her attack had been caught. As would be expected, he didn't have any mercy at this point. As he slashed his sword, Camella atttempted to dodge his blade, but she still ended up with a decent sized gash in her side.

As Izvilvin pushed himself away from her, Camella had to wonder if he was afraid of a counter-attack or if he just wanted to be sure that he remained at an advantage. Either way, his next attack would have surely finished her if the pain from his last attack hadn't caused her to collapse to the ground sending the blade just over her head instead of into her neck.

Camella pulled herself back to her feet only to realize that Izvilvin had put away his sword and was ready to fight her at close range with a pair of Sais. She realized that her life was near an end. Her invisibility wouldn't work because the blood would give away her position and she wasn't going to be able to move half as fast as she normally could because of her injury.

Camella wasn't going to give up without a fight, though.
------------

Back were the other bounty hunters were...

"Seems this battle is over. Can I kill them now?" The bounty hunter named Lily said as she cocked her crossbow.

"Fine, fine. Just kill the bitch first. We wouldn't want her to spring to life on us." The bounty hunter named Max said in frustration.
-----------

Back at the main fight, Camella was about to strike again when she heard the sound of an arrow flying through the air. She turned around to look, and the arrow that was meant for her heart ended up hitting her right arm instead. This was the last straw. She fell down to the ground in pain and was about to give up entirely when she heard the sound of another arrow coming towards her, this time when she looked up, she realized this one wasn't meant for her, but for Izvilvin.

Working off of a crazy instinct, Camella jumped to her feet just in time to deflect the arrow aimed at Izvilvin. The strain from her actions sent her collapsing into a bloody mess on the ground, perhaps for good this time.

It scared her to realize that the only person who could save her at this point was Izvilvin. She needed to appeal to his better side and the only way to do that was reveal everything and her will to change in a way even he could understand.

Camella took out her copy of the bounty poster with Izvilvin's face on it, showed it to him, ripped it in two and muttered out a single word.

"Mercy."
----------

Back where the bounty hunter's were...

"You were supposed to kill her, Lily."

"I tried, Max, but I didn't expect her to turn around. Don't worry, though, after saving this Izvilvin guy, I doubt she even has enough strength left to stand up. This next shot will kill her for sure."

Lily carefully aimed the next arrow at Camella's head and fired.

[Izvilvin]

Never had the drawing of blood satisfied Izvilvin so. In a flash he was transported back in time, to the day when he and Khalxaen had met in Scara Brae to do some grunt work for the Scara Scourge. His approach to killing the guards had been brutal, bloodthirsty; it had been the first action he’d seen since escaping the mines of Kachuck.

Since then, wounding an opponent had not brought such perverse pleasure. Seeing Camella writhe in pain, like her blade had surely made others do, brought a carnal joy to the Drow’s being.

So indulgent was he that Izvilvin hadn’t heard the arrow coming. It hit Camella hard, the force of the projectile causing her body to shudder in reaction. Suddenly, the warrior recalled there were others watching, and he understood how vulnerable the anger had made him.

This realization itself, however, was a distraction. Though Izvilvin heard the sound of a bowstring snapping, he didn’t have the awareness to piece together the possibilities. Even as Camella rose, weapon at the ready, the Drow’s movement was sluggish. Her attack was wayward, though, heading beyond him. Before he countered with a sai to her exposed chest, the telltale sound of metal on metal told him what happened. The bounty hunter fell hard, then revealed to a shocked Izvilvin a poster with his own image upon it, then ripped it.

It could have meant anything, but it was fortunate for Camella that Izvilvin knew the word. Painfully enough, it was Palmer’s last muttered word before he was killed by the wizard Sasarai. The Drow would never forget it or its meaning, which he’d learned upon asking Mazoo the mage.

His decision would need to wait – Camella didn’t seem to be going anywhere yet anyway. He turned from her and faced the three in the distance, hiding in the darkness as if they could escape his vision. He saw the cocked arrow, heard it launch and followed its trajectory with skilled eyes, kicking it roughly as it tried to pass him by. The action stunned the bounty hunters, who rose together to stand against Izvilvin, who trotted slowly across the sand.

[Camella]

Camella was in pain. A lot of pain. The bounty hunters were heading towards her, but Izvilvin seemed to be protecting her, for now... The three bounty hunters approached Izvilvin warily. Wait a minute... Three? She was sure there were four.

Camella pondered this for a moment. One of the men was missing. She looked around and saw nothing for a few minutes. It was then that she realized that if one of them snuck away while she was fighting, she wouldn't have noticed because she was concentrating on the fight too hard. It was the perfect opportunity for one of them to sneak up on her.

Sure enough, the smallest man, (Monty), had grown bored and decided to come from behind for a surprise attack. Camella decided to play dead for the moment. She waited patiently as the man came closer and closer.

The man was 5 feet away when Camella finally acted. She threw one of her daggers into the man's ankle, and was quite happy to hear the man scream out in pain. She could only delay the guy, but at least she could do that extremely well.

[Izvilvin]

Icicle once again replaced one of Izvilvin’s sai – if he was going to fight three experienced bounty hunters at once, he wanted a bit more of a range advantage. Parrying with a sword was considerably easier than doing so with a sai, and Icicle’s tendency to leave an opaque wall where it drifted would offer him a chance at keeping the fight in his favor. Not once did he consider that he could lose.

Lily, Gato and Max. Lily’s crossbow was the biggest worry, made worse as she backed away and allowed her two allies to take the front. Max carried an axe of iron, notched a hundred times along the blade – Izvilvin didn’t worry himself with a thought toward it, knowing the weapon would never touch him. Gato, however, was the Drow’s size and had two blades sheathed at each hip. From the size and shape of the scabbards, Izvilvin figured they were scimitars.

Gato and Max rushed forward, the former being the quicker of the two. From behind them, Lily loaded an arrow, firing expertly between her two cohorts. The missile flew true in the night, but was slapped out of the air by Icicle’s tip, sending the frozen projectile to the sand. Lily quickly loaded another and waited as Gato drew his steel scimitars, one of which glowed white.

Izvilvin met the human’s ordinary blade with Icicle, parrying a high strike and carrying it wide, leaving a slick layer of ice over its side. Gato’s white sword followed, coming in at mid-level; Izvilvin twirled with the strike, retreating a step as the sword’s tip cut by.

Max was upon him as the Drow faced forward once more. He swung the axe with remarkable speed, but Izvilvin was far too quick, ducking below the strike and using Icicle’s blade to force the weapon up and over him. He tried to slide the sword down into Max’s hand, but the bounty hunter released the shaft and gripped it with his free hand, nimbly tossing the axe so that Icicle didn’t cut him. Unfortunately for him, the weapon slipped slightly as an unexpected icy surface covered the weapon’s grip.

Izvilvin came in hard with his sai, but Max caught the elf’s wrist with his free hand. With a sudden jerk of his neck, the bounty hunter’s head met the Drow’s face, sending the warrior stumbling backward, stars in his view. Before he could recover, an arrow bolt caught him in the left thigh. Izvilvin grunted, threw his sai at the nearby Max and plucked the arrow from his flesh, tossing it aside. Max’s plate mail protected him from harm, as the sai bounced harmlessly aside.

The two attacked at once, then, and clearly showed signs that they had fought many battles together. Max stepped past Izvilvin and swing at mid-height, while Gato struck high and low from the front, giving the Drow no room to escape. Moving by instinct, the warrior dropped down to one knee and stabbed Icicle into the sand, using a foot to reinforce it as Gato’s white blade struck it. To his surprise, sparks of electricity shot up and down the sword, stinging his entire body with pain.

He heard Gato laugh and say some words he did not understand. Izvilvin dove away and rolled in the sand, smoke rising from his scalp and above his mane of white hair. Bolts of lightning ran up and down Gato’s sword, seen clearly in the night as Max once again led a charge. Rising, Izvilvin replaced his thrown sai with a kukri, figuring the glass would not be so conductive to Gato’s lightning scimitar.

“Kill him already!” cried Lily, firing another crossbow bolt. Izvilvin saw it out of the corner of his eye and pulled his head back, barely dodging.

The bolt distracted him long enough for Max to take advantage, though, swinging his axe downward to try and cleave the nimble Drow in two. Izvilvin stepped beyond it and in close, slashing the human in the leg with his kukri, drawing a deep, long gash along the outside of Max’s thigh. In response the human swung at him, but Izvilvin was down and beyond the lumbering bounty hunter before it could hit.

Gato readied himself for the approaching Drow, falling into a defensive stance. Izvilvin stabbed forth with his kukri, easily deflected by the lightning sword. As expected, the enchantment did not affect him this time. Bolstered by the knowledge, Izvilvin brought Icicle over in a narrow arc, trying to capitalize on an opening. Gato parried it by crossing his arm over, exposing his back to the Drow briefly. Izvilvin did not take the chance to strike, knowing he did not have time, but retracted Icicle – creating a wall of blue mist between himself and the bounty hunter.

Another click from the distance, and a bolt drove itself deep into Izvilvin’s side. He grunted but had no time to deal with the arrow, hearing Max’s heavy steps behind him. Instinct alone drove him to fall flat to the sand, barely escaping the decapitating blow of that notched axe.

Gato burst through the opaque wall and squinted, not noticing Izvilvin on the ground. As quickly as he could, the Drow stabbed his kukri down into the bounty hunter’s foot, impaling it. Gato’s scream stunned Lily, who had been readying another arrow, and caused Max to hesitate just long enough for the Drow to roll aside and rise once more.

[Camella]

Camella attempted to get up. Her whole body was in pain from a combination of her injuries and straining her body to stop the arrow aimed at Izvilvin, but she was a sitting duck unless she got to her feet. Camella stumbled around a bit and fell back to the ground, scraping her arms and legs.

Monty laughed at Camella as he stared down at her. Camella couldn't help but stare at her foe, wondering why in the world he hadn't pulled out a weapon yet. Before Camella could attempt to get up again, her question was answered.

Monty started to form a fireball in his right hand, why she hadn't considered the fact that he might be a mage until now, Camella was unsure of. Camella was sure that she had no defense against the spell if it got off.

No choice. She had to bare the pain and get to her feet. She managed to succeed this time, but only out of sheer necessity and willpower. There was little time left for her to act, but being a bounty hunter herself, she was able to notice his obvious weakness. He wasn't used to using this particular spell. Why he was using it, then, was beyond her imagination, unless... It was just a hunch, but she was pretty sure the fireball was a distraction.

Camella charged in as if to attack. She was unable to feel the pain from her earlier injuries as she went to attack his right hand. Just as she got in close, she slid underneath. This did hurt a bunch, but it was a spur of the moment thing. Sure enough, the left hand of the man conjured a lightning bolt in a split second and fired it at Camella as she charged in. She was able to fully dodge his attack only because of the predictability of it all. In sliding underneath, though, Camella was able too provide a counter-attack to his leg, sending him to his knees. As she looked back at where the lightening struck the ground, she was glad that she wasn't hit.

Now, she had to get to her feet again. Too bad for her that she was hurting even more now.

[Izvilvin]

The Drow’s injuries fell back on his list of priorities, for he knew the human with the crossbow posed too big a threat. While he fought Gato and Max, she would pick him apart with her bolts – eventually, Izvilvin would fall to injury or be killed due to a fatal mistake.

So rather than capitalize on Gato’s anguish or Max’s sudden imbalance, Izvilvin bolted away from them both and toward the woman. She remained calm, stoic in the darkness, raising the crossbow and looking down the sight. She fired, but the bow was deflected by Icicle, sending the projectile flying harmlessly away so that it landed right next to Camella, almost completely frozen over.

Now Lily’s calm subsided, and she threw her crossbow aside – replacing it with a short sword. Izvilvin was upon her then, slashing high with Icicle and low with the bloodied glass kukri. She parried both, but overextended when her sword rushed down to meet the kukri. With a snap of his wrist, Izvilvin brought Icicle across her throat, creating a large gash through her esophagus. She dropped her weapon and gripped at the wound, struggling to swallow a breath. The Drow buried his kukri in her gut, silencing her for good.

“Lily!” cried Max, and he became overwhelmed with rage. “Kill this fucker!”

Sheathing the kukri, Izvilvin carefully plucked up the crossbow, loading it with a bolt from Lily’s belt. With a single hand he raised it toward Max, who was rushing forward as quickly as that massive bulk could carry him. Gato was hobbling behind, seething in angry pain. Izvilvin waited for the right moment to fire, which was when Max was within ten feet – the bolt struck the massive human square in the neck, causing the axe-wielder to pause for but a moment. Somehow, he continued on, overcome with the need to kill the Drow.

Trying not to let his surprise show, Izvilvin drew a sai to compliment Icicle. Max came in with a heavy horizontal swipe, one that the Drow easily ducked below. The weapon came around quicker than Izvilvin expected, though, fueled by Max’s anger, and swiped once more. The warrior needed to leap to avoid it, for the swipe was too low to duck this time. His landing was awkward due to his injuries, and Izvilvin stumbled.

Max’s hand gripped the Drow’s hair, pulling him in. The human had abandoned his axe to the sand, knowing its futility. With amazing strength Max pulled Izvilvin into a bear hug, squeezing him so hard that Icicle and the sai fell from his fingers. Crying out, Izvilvin could feel his bones crack beneath the immense strength of the human, and he knew he was in trouble. His eyes shot open, burning with lavender intensity, and Izvilvin drove his head forward. He struck Max’s face, heard the human grunt, but it seemed to accomplish nothing. Again and again he smacked that bearded face, but Max only seemed to squeeze tighter.

Izvilvin bit, desperate, trying to get to Max’s eyes with his teeth. Max released him for but a moment, just enough to grab the Drow higher up on his arms, making it impossible for Izvilvin to reach his face anymore. However, Izvilvin was more than able to reach Max’s neck – and the bolt which protruded from it. Driving his head forward once more, Izvilvin rammed the bolt deep inside Max’s throat.

The next thing he knew, Izvilvin was hitting the sand, gasping for air and spitting sand out of his mouth. Max stumbled back, trying to grasp the bolt and remove it, but it was too deeply embedded in his flesh. Falling onto his back, Max died still clawing at the flesh of his neck, ripping his own skin to shreds.

Gato didn’t react as vocally as he did in response to Lily’s fall, but he was burning enough over the injury to his foot. Izvilvin struggled against the pain, taking Icicle from the sand and rising, unbalanced.

Despite the pain, the Drow was the one to go on the offensive. He slashed diagonally from on high, a strike that Gato blocked with his normal blade. The lightning sword thrust forward in a stab, a strike Izvilvin sidestepped. Twisting, Izvilvin kicked as he retracted Icicle, kicking Gato’s kneecap so forcefully that the leg bent slightly backward. Gato screamed and struggled to hold his ground – Izvilvin was down, unable to capitalize.

With several ribs shattered and blood streaking steadily from his mouth, even the durable Izvilvin was having a hard time as he forced himself up. Gato was hobbling, but still had a good leg to stand on – as long as he did, he would not surrender. Monty, after all, was still fighting on, and after he killed the Camella bitch, he would serve a valuable ally against the Drow; only if Gato could survive, though.

“Whol sila verin ulu ussta delmah, dos el,” said the Drow, voice level. For bringing evil to his home, Gato would die, he said. Just like Camella should.

Gato didn’t understand, and didn’t make a move to attack, either. Izvilvin did, stepping forward and feinting right. Gato didn’t bite, parrying a slash at toward his left, good leg. Electricity ran up Icicle, shocking Izvilvin once more and conducting more intensely at his wounds. He overcame the paralyzing effect just in time to duck Gato’s normal sword. The bounty hunter’s overdependence on the lightning sword cost him dearly, as Izvilvin dragged Icicle along the fighter’s gut, opening a massive gash just under his stomach that iced the opened skin, effectively holding open the wound.

Gato fell hard, tears in his eyes. He dropped his weapons and tried to hold his gut, but could do nothing but squirm in agony as he died.

Izvilvin had won, but at no light cost. He could feel the pain more intensely now, as the adrenaline wore off. Even his rage toward Camella momentarily subsided. With great effort, he bent and claimed the lightning sword for his own – a trophy awarded to him for defending Fallien from harm yet again.

Turning, Icicle in one hand and the new blade in his other, Izvilvin stalked toward Monty and Camella. Monty seemed to detect his presence, as he turned suddenly when the Drow came within thirty feet. Seeing Gato’s blade in Izvilvin’s hand, the mage panicked, throwing a bolt of lightning forward. It hit Izvilvin square in the chest, spreading over his ebony body like hungry snakes. Grunting, the warrior focused and overcame the spell, dismissing the pain as if it were nothing.

Monty’s back was to Camella, but he was focused on the deadly Drow now, who stalked forward with a determined bloodlust in his eyes.

[Camella]

Camella was determined to get out of this situation alive. She no longer cared about anything else. It was only by sheer determination that she was able to get to her feet again.

"Come on, Missy," Monty mocked, "I heard you were dangerous, but so far all you have been is pathetic."

Camella nodded, "Dangerous? That is an understatement."

Camella went invisible right after saying this. The blood dripping from her wound was still able to give away her position, but she had just found a way to improvise. Sure, he knew where she was, but he couldn't see her hands. Therefore, there was no way he could know where or when her next attack would hit.

As she rushed in, she planned her attack. A full frontal attack was too obvious. What she needed to do was wait for a counter-attack opportunity. She needed to counter a counter-attack. She rushed in at a fast pace. Her body was aching all over, but she didn't mind, at least it was better than death. As she suspected, Monty got ready to defend against her. Camella noticed his left hand come up just in time to dodge a lightning bolt. This was her opportunity to attack and she took it. She went in and slashed at his right side with both of her daggers. Both of them made good clean cuts, but now she was visible again.

"Bitch!" Monty said tossing her aside.

At that moment a frozen arrow landed next to Camella. A minute later, Camella heard the sounds of Max crying in rage over Lily's death.

Camella knew at this point that she only had to stay alive a bit longer before Izvilvin could help her. Surely he would have no problem defeating the other two.

Camella got up again and went in to capitalize on the fact that he was back on the ground. Monty merely dodged her attacks without counter-attacking.

"Come on, you've had many great opportunities to finish me off" Camella yelled at Monty, confused as hell about why he wasn't attacking her anymore.

"Quite right, Little girl. You hardly seem to be worth it, though. "Besides, I am much more interested in what is going on with your 'friend'"

Surely enough, Izvilvin had just defeated Max. He was looking to be in horrible shape though, as he went to face off against Gato.

Camella charged in from behind Monty to attack him from behind out of anger. Monty, however was aware of her attempt at a sneak attack and teleported himself behind her. "You are pathetic." She heard Monty's voice say from behind her before punching her in her wounded side.

Camella heard Gato's body fall to the ground. Izvilvin had triumphed again, it seemed. Monty seemed to notice too, as he attacked Izvilvin with what looked like a strong magical attack. Camella was surprised to see Izvilvin merely shrug it off. It now seemed certain that she could get a sneak attack in, Monty's focus was entirely on Izvilvin. Getting to her feet again was a bit of a trick, but she managed to do it some how. She stumbled her way towards Monty and attempted to slash at his neck from behind. Once again, Monty teleported behind her.

Before Camella knew it, she got shot at point blank range in the back by the fireball Monty had been charging. She fell to the ground in great pain. Monty continued his attack with a lightningbolt blowing one of Camella's arms clean off.

This just wasn't her day.

[Izvilvin]

Blood ran freely down Izvilvin’s side and from his nose and mouth. It seemed to pour out of him like crimson waterfalls, but still he pressed on. It was not Camella he was worried about – no, that bitch could fend for herself – but Irrakam. Four bounty hunters, five including the wretch who had killed so many Fallien men and women, who were so bent on killing the Drow would stop at nothing to get to him. Camella had made that more than obvious.

Monty, upon dealing with Camella as quickly as he had, turned his sights once more on Izvilvin, who was suddenly within striking distance. He swung hard, wide, and haphazardly at the mage, who teleported as the lightning blade came in. Expecting it, Izvilvin spun and slashed elegantly with Icicle in a focused strike, mist trailing behind the sword.

Skilled despite his wounds, Monty spawned a sword of his own creation, a long white blade made of pure light. Icicle hit it hard, drawing sparks from the impact. Though it left its trademark ice on the sword, it was quickly melted away, seemingly by heat. Monty countered by throwing his hand forward, fire spewing from his palm. Izvilvin ducked quickly, throwing both weapons out in a pincer strike at the mage’s legs. Both hit, severing Monty below his knees.

The wizard fell to the sand, screaming louder than a banshee. Izvilvin grimaced and put the man out of his misery, driving Icicle’s cold tip into his mouth. The enchantment left Monty’s horrible expression frozen in place, his blood frozen against Icicle’s Damascus until the Drow would have time to wash it off.

Now all that was left was Camella, collapsed on the sand with an arm missing and multiple other wounds. Though she looked to be suffering horribly – Izvilvin could not imagine the pain of a severed limb – the Drow could not feel an ounce of remorse for her. Not even enough to kill her.

“If you live, do not ever come back here.”

He felt foolish for leaving her alive, regardless of her injuries, but he did it anyway. It was a mixture of pleasure for him to see her suffer, the need to get his own injuries treated, and a desire to simply forget all that had happened. He didn’t think she would hunt him down again.

For this time only, three strikes was not enough.

((Spoils: Lightning Short Sword (unnamed right now): A short Damascus sword the same length as Icicle, enchanted with lightning. Current runs through this sword at all times, conducting against metal it touches. A pommel, handle or blade with leather on it will protect the wielder of a parrying weapon, provided the leather halts the electricity. The shock is not enough to seriously harm a foe unless it conducts with their blood or if they are soaked with water, in which case it is much more effective. Includes a scabbard that suppresses the sword’s effect, similar to Icicle’s.

If for whatever reason you hesitate to give this spoil in this quest, take away my current gold and the gold reward from this quest to compensate.))

[Camella]

Camella spat up some blood. She had been royally outmatched in every aspect of her fight against Izvilvin, but she was too blind to realize it. The truth was now all too obvious to her, though. She would never be able to surpass Izvilvin's skill. Truth be told, she was surprised she had survived all three of her encounters with the drow. Pushing herself to her feet with her one good arm, Camella slowly stumbled away from the town and in a direction she hoped would lead her to a town that didn't recognize her so she could get healed.

Camella collapsed from the blood loss after two minutes of walking. Some time later, Camella woke up. She had no idea where she was, but she had been healed by someone. She had both her arms, her wounds were healed, but she still had scars and bruises. She was also still feeling weak. Whoever had healed her had mad a rush job of it.

Camella sat up and looked around. "I see you are finally awake." A familiar voice said. "You have to be more careful when out on the hunt. Izvilvin was your target, correct?"

Camella turned to see that the man speaking to her was none other than the man who gave her the job.

"Why did you save me?" she asked out of curiousity.

"I normally wouldn't have, but when I heard there was a huge bounty on your head, I figured I had to warn you. When you came for the Izvilvin job a year ago, it was a godsend. I was about to give up on anyone ever accepting it. It was suicide for almost anybody to take that job, but you seemed to have that glow about you of someone who could handle it."

"You were wrong. I refuse to try to kill that man again."

"I hired someone to heal your arm and waist. You were lucky I stumbled across you too. You would have been dead otherwise. You owe me."

"Forget it. I am not on the job anymore."

"Are you going soft on me? I could turn you in for money right now. The only reason I don't do that is because I am counting on you to kill Izvilvin. If you don't reconsider, I can get bounty hunters on you within minutes."

"Blackmail, huh? You leave me no choice, then."

"Thank you for reconsidering" the man said in a delighted voice.

Camella turned invisible, rushed in, and slit the man's throat.

"Whoever said I reconsidered."

[Witchblade]

Storyline

Continuity: - 5 I feel like I didn’t get enough information about the previous bounty quests from either of you. Yes, they were available for me to read, but I shouldn’t have to read them. You two should have been able to provide me with sufficient information to make me want to read then. Not only because it’ll give me greater clarity, but also because they’re interesting.

The storyline itself is rather basic, not saying that’s a bad thing. Good quests have come from rather basic storyline. I just feel like the two of you could have done a much better job here. And the four extra bounty hunters seemed too cliché when Camella was playing them, not to mention the chance of them running into Camella and Izvilvin is rather small. Though Izvilvin did post flyers, which Camella never mentioned or seemed to find, so I guess that could explain their appearance.

Setting: - 4 What setting? Camella, your idea of setting is ‘she walked into a room, there were five people in it.’ That’s great, what did the room look like? Smell like? Did she touch anything? What were the people doing? Remember, they’re part of your setting as well. The reader can’t see it unless you describe it. Setting is not a canvas on which you paint, but a stage on which you act.

Matt, I can see you tried with your setting. In the beginning it started off fine, but a few posts in and it slackened quite a bit. Whether this was from frustration or not caring, I don’t know. Try to keep it up next time. If you had treated every post as your introduction then it would have been much better.

Pacing: - 4 The pacing really jumped around a lot. Camella, your character slaughtered 190 people in a single post. The action alone is nearly impossible—more on that in action—but the pacing of it was horrible. The way your character breezed right through such senseless slaughter made it seem like ten minutes had gone by and all those people were dead. It’s so improbable, time wise and ability wise.

The actual battle between Izvilvin and Camella felt off as well. There were times when things were happening in quick succession in Matt’s posts, yet slower and drawn out in Camella’s. That kind of killed the tension in a few scenes. Also, the whole battle was rather quick. You two spent more time fighting the bounty hunters than each other. Nothing that I’m detracting points for, but a bit disappointing.

Character

Dialogue: - 5 Holy crap, Izvilvin spoke Common! Okay, maybe not that big of a deal, but he seems so much better at it than the last time I was in a quest with him. He may not completely understand it yet, or speak it fluently, but it’s nice to see he’s progressed this far. Matt, good job with the dialogue. The only thing I didn’t like were those incidents outside of the medical centre. The woman’s speech actually sounded scripted, which it is, but it’s your job to make it feel real. Other than that, your dialogue was fine.

Camella, you’re a bit on the cliché when it comes to dialogue, however most people get better at it the more they write it. Watch out for ‘character ego boosting’ as I call it in your speech. That’s when an enemy or NPC says something they wouldn’t normally say and it’s almost a compliment to your character. I. E. ‘you’re a really strong opponent.’ You had one of the soldiers in your first post remark about Camella and it seemed a little on the ego boosting side to me. The bounty hunters had similar speech problems. Real people usually don’t remark to their opponent how strong they are, not unless it’s some kind of friendly duel. And in Fallien, the citizens usually speak Fallien, not Common.

Action: - 1 Wow…just wow. I cannot remember the last quest I’ve read where someone has so blatantly overpowered and powergamed their character. Camella, you are a level zero character going up against a level seven character. The huge level gap pretty much enables Izvilvin’s character to outmatch yours rather easily, unless he’s poisoned, mortally wounded and has a headache. I’m not saying a level zero could never beat a level seven, but it would take cunning more than direct attacks. There’s a reason his skills in combat are legendary.

Then there’s the fact that you killed 190 of Fallien’s citizens. Yes, they’re all in a medical institution, but that doesn’t make them completely vulnerable and unable to defend themselves. You also killed armed guards. Plus, did you know that every Fallien citizen is trained in the militia at the age of 10? That means every person Camella just killed had average, to above average or maybe even advanced skills in the art of combat. You, by the way, have no listing for your skills in your profile, but it’s safe to assume as you’re level zero that you have average to above average skills with those daggers.

On top of all this, you broke through a wooden door using only a dagger, while wounded by the way, and your arm was blown off during battle! How did Camella survive something like that without regenerative abilities? Why was her employer mysteriously in the area in time to save you and how were you able to get your arm back? I’m sure the blast would have destroyed part of it, so even if you had an extremely capable healer they wouldn’t be able to re-attach it. It takes roughly ten to fifteen minutes to bleed to death from that kind of wound, probably shorter for your already wounded and bleeding character.

You also had your character jump over Izvilvin—while standing in sand—he’s 5’8 by the way and Camella is 5’1 and you have no listing for extra special agility in your profile. You dodged a side attack by ducking, doing so would not give you enough time to completely duck under the attack and in fact it would hit your character in the shoulder or head. And you had your character easily recover from hits during battle that would stun people, like a kick to the head for example.

Matt, the only problem I have with Izvilvin’s actions was when he kicked that arrow out of the air. I’m sure it’s within his ability—and luck—to do something like that, but it still doesn’t sit well. It would take an immense amount of precision for Izvilvin not to have stabbed himself with the arrow or have had the arrow head even graze against his leg/pants. Just keep that in mind the next time you kick an arrow.

Persona: - 5 The anger that was portrayed in this quest was a side of Izvilvin’s personality I have never seen before, including his bloodlust. It was interesting and I enjoyed this new look on him. I would like to see you experiment with this some more in later quests, I feel it could add a much greater depth to Izvilvin who sometimes comes off as rather emotionless. I also like the small bits of personality you gave the bounty hunters; it helped bring them to life while they were attacking you. I almost felt sorry for Max when Izvilvin killed Lilly.

Camella, your character’s personality tends to jump all over the place, from predictable to I don’t know what. I thought her using Izvilvin as her saviour there and appealing to his better side was rash and stupid and not something a trained assassin would do. This is the third time she’s tried to kill Izvilvin and she just killed 190 Fallien citizens. He’s not going to give a rat’s ass about her. On a note about NPC’s, they may not be important to you, but to the reader they are. Giving them believable personalities makes the entire storyline more believable.

Writing Style

Mechanics: - 6 I noticed a few missing words here and there in both of your writing, as well as the wrong tense used on a word. I also think there were a few times when the entirely wrong word was used. As far as spelling and grammar go, nothing major that I see worth mentioning. Just keep re-reading your posts.

Technique: - 3 I didn’t notice the use of any techniques in either of your writing.

Clarity: - 6 There were a few times when I had to re-read some posts to understand exactly what was going on. Matt post #8, when Izvilvin hit the sand there in the opening line, it actually had me lost for a moment. I think your character’s previous action either got lost or wasn’t described enough to remind the reader he threw himself into the air to kick Camella.

Wild Card: - 3 The third instalment of the bounty for Izvilvin quests, what seems to be the last as well. It definitely could have been done better. Camella, I suggest you stop powergaming your character or you’ll soon find people won’t want to role-play with you anymore.

*hugs her Izvilvin plushie*

I miss role-playing with Izvilvin.

Total: 42

Rewards:

Camella receives 250 experience and 150 GP!
Izvilvin receives 1,000 experience!

Had this just been the one quest, Matt, I would not reward you this spoil. But seeing as this is a spoil tying into a three-part quest, I’m allowing it. Izvilvin receives the as of yet unnamed short sword with the lightning enchantment.

[Letho]

EXP/GP added!