Decisions to Make (Open)

[Timmir]

It was the middle of the afternoon in a small farming village several miles northeast from Dras-Leona. Morrow sat upon his horse, Cyrus, as he rode around the village. He looked at the villager as they watched him and his men move about their village, with fear on their. It was a bit demoralizing to know the villagers see them in such a bad light, though he couldn't blame them. It was no secret that their are many among the empire's ranks who just abuse their power, and enforce the will of their tyrannical king.

"Well, at least there seems to be no sign of hostility yet." He said silently to himself. If the villagers knew the true reason why Morrow's squad was in their village, it could cause quite a bit of strife among the villagers, and that was the last thing he wanted. Especially when he himself didn't fully agree with their mission.

[Quetzal]

Ri'Shei watched the villagers as they walked through. They might resent the Empire's presence in their small settlement, but they wouldn't understand if they tried explaining why they were there. Talking to them would give them the chance to talk back, and then they would have to discipline them, something which never went down well. She doubted her unnaturally tall frame and foreign features helped their upset, either.

Walking through the village in broad daylight showed the villagers that it was the Empire who had the right to patrol their streets, and the Empire who would keep them safe. The Varden would have to sneak about under cover of darkness, their deeds far more suspect. Ri'Shei couldn't really see what people saw in the Varden. They all seemed to her like a disorganised band of thugs, for the most part. Self-righteous warriors who stubbornly believed everyone was below them and they were always right, and airy-fairy spiritual hypocrites who preached peace while making war, blamed others for all their own failings and talked nonsense about nature as a disguise to their total lack of action of any kind.

"What's the plan?" Ri'Shei asked Morrow, anxious to make a start.

[Brenton]

Five feet and Eight inches tall cloaked in eternal shadows, a man walked briskly through the crowds, melding with them and then detaching again with similar ease. His hand gripped a leather wrapped piece of solid steel while his knuckles popped and groaned in protest at the torture. Slowly the man stopped and let his shape sink into the back ground, instantly using the cloak to be a part of the wall instead of in the crowd. Only a true guard would see him now as he was instead of as a shadow on a wall that meant nothing to them.

If only these Alagaesian humans knew what they were getting themselves into by following Galbatorix so blindly without resisting. The man knew of great leaders of men out there who would take anyone in but no human would go to them. Hell, Konner Derriksson was busy gathering recruits for the assassin outpost. Szven'Xoc looked with barely veiled hatred as people walked by and then he saw the person he was looking for, a tall woman known as Ri'Shei.

[Timmir]

Morrow looked over at Ri'shei as he heard the woman ask him what the plan was. It was strange to him to be near a Spartan like he was now, especially considering that he had only learned of their presence when he had first met Ri'shei. Still, the woman seemed to be as loyal and as eager as anyone can be, so he was happy to have her come along for this mission.

"For now, we're going to treat this like a normal patrol. I have Sorna and Rhys taking watch from the rooftops while the rest of our squad is going to patrol through town like normal. You and me though, are going to scout out and patrol around the perimeter and make sure no one tries to sneak past." Morrow informed Ri'shei, wishing he had a chance to inform the spartan of the plan earlier.

"Alright men, you know where your posts are. Now move out." He called out to his squad before riding his horse towards the outskirts of town. Behind him, everyone in the squad began spliting off to there seperate posts.

[Quetzal]

Ri'Shei failed to see Szven'Xoc, focused on listening to and carrying out her orders as she was. Her guard was up more than usual since they were on a mission, but the assassin was behind her and hard to see at a glance. She hoped the appearance of a normal patrol would be convincing. The population of the town might be alarmed and upset by any more dramatic shows. That was undesirable as to her knowledge these people were innocent Empire supporters, normal people including children, the sick and the elderly. The Empire might be a little harsh in its ways of keeping peace and order, but they didn't harm the innocent and vulnerable for no reason. Ri'Shei would never have joined if that were true.

She followed Morrow at his command, eyes scanning every detail of each building and the surroundings of the town. Aside from their patrol, there was no sign of life within the town as its inhabitants had retreated inside. That was sensible of them, they were out of the way should anything kick up. Maybe they had their secrets as well. She didn't care, that wasn't the mission they were on right now. Her weapons were not drawn in case she needed both her hands free. "Where do you think they'll be?" she asked to Morrow in a quiet voice.

[Brenton]

Slowly Szven'Xoc crept closer but suddenly stopped because he was being tailed by someone himself, a shadowy figure in the distance. Well that was just plain not right for an assassin to have a follower when he was on a mission. With a half-hearted sigh, the king of the assassins moved out of sight and jumped onto a roof to wait. It was only a few seconds that passed before the Empire guard passed his position, confused as to where Szven'Xoc had disappeared to now. He bunched his legs up and jumped down at the man, weapons slamming forward with a hollow thud before the guard dropped with a fractured skull. Dead! Just the way he needed it to be. With a quickness that the man rarely used, Szven moved the guard to a pile of hay and deposited his body there within before dashing forward to stay near the woman.

Targets were so hard to follow when they towered over you but Szven'Xoc wasn't normal himself. He was a Ranger, part werewolf with some dragon spirit, elf, and fey in his bloodline. This gave him speed that he used right now to stay within sight but not hearing. As Szven'Xoc neared he readied his weapon, the steel bar, and leapt forward. A blow to the head would be best but he was aiming for the legs to knock the woman to the ground. Hopefully the blow landed because Szven'Xoc was gone into the crowd with nothing but a rustle of dark clothing to show he had been there. Now the Empire would know he was going to take them out slowly.

[Quetzal]

It was a good thing Ri'Shei had left her hands free, as she heard a noise behind her before a metal bar hit her legs. She had had no time to react to the sound, so had no time to see the attack coming. Her legs were swept from under her, her hands reaching out to break her fall. Her palms were grazed, but that was better than landing head first. Twisting around to see who had hit her, expecting another attack, but only saw Szven'Xoc fleeing into a crowd. His face was turned away from her, but she got a good look at what he was wearing, his general body shape, and his hair before he disappeared into the crowd.

She got to her feet quickly. Her toga-like dress had torn at the knees where they'd hit the ground hard, a little blood seeping into the fabric. The back of her calves stung where the blow had hit, but a bruise and grazed knees and hands weren't much to worry about. The hands were sensitive and the ripped skin was more painful although it wouldn't do her much harm. Since it would make holding a weapon painful, she healed them quickly and ignored her other injuries; they were minor and would heal swiftly on their own.

"What the hell?" she exclaimed loudly. "I can understand assassins killing their targets, but what good does just pushing them over do? Little kids do that, not fully grown men. Whoever that assassin was, he must be pretty stupid. I could probably recognise him now, I'm completely fine and he's just made me angry. Plus, I suppose our target has shown himself now. We got him out in the open without even having to try." she laughed, and look at Morrow. "Shall we let the others know so they can be aware? They're spread out enough to find and corner him wherever he is," she asked. If the assassin really was so stupid as to revealing his presence simply for the pointless act of knocking someone over, this mission would be pretty easy.

[Timmir]

Before he was able to answer Ri'shei's question, he noticed a figure running towards them at the corner of his eye. The figure was quick, knocking Ri'shei's leg with something that looked metallic before quickly disappearing into a crowd. His attention quickly returned to Ri'shei as she stood up and spoke.

"Hmm... That's probably a good idea." Morrow said in agreement as he looked into the crowd that the assassin had ran into. "Something doesn't sit right with me though. If this was some kind of attack or attempt to get our attention, he might as well have killed you? No. I think he wants us, especially you, to know that he's lurking around, waiting to strike." He paused for a second as he pondered on something. He then looked up a slight smile formed as he saw a figure on the rooftops.

"Sound the alarm. We have a slippery snake on the loose." He called out to the figure, who seemed to have nodded before heading towards the church. It wouldn't be long after that before the church bells began to ring throughout the village.

"We best start escorting people back to their homes. The fewer people out and about like this, the fewer places he and whatever associates he has can hide." He told Ri'shei before moving towards the crowd to begin to do just that.

[Brenton]

Szven'Xoc had been an assassin for his entire life, learning how to evade and recognize situations where he was in danger instead of the other way around. This was one of those situations. So the man ran at full speed toward the buildings and leapt up onto the roof, having to vault off the wall to get there. Quickly he dashed toward the church to see another man heading that way as well. So the two down below knew about him and were going to sound the alarm. No sense in letting them do that now was there? The assassin ran faster at the guard and smacked him with the blade of his hand, effectively knocking the man unconscious, before climbing the church tower.

Now to cut the bell string and go to all of the other potential alarms that could be raised. Better yet, cut the bell and burn the tower. With a small blade, Szven cut the bell down and pulled out flint and steel. Two strikes and a flame was started at the base of one corner. He moved to the other three and did the exact same thing before grabbing the two torches and throwing them into the center. As the flames licked at the wood, Szven'Xoc ran and jumped from above, straight into a pile of hay.

He slipped out and walked toward the next bell tower that was being guarded by one man alone. Szven stabbed the man and climbed the tower with practiced ease. Same thing as last time. He cut the bell down and lit the tower on fire just to jump out into more hay. One last tower to go and then he would be safe enough. Szven ran toward that tower and climbed it, severing the cord that held the bell up. Flint and steel went to work to light the third tower aflame and as it burned he jumped out.

Now to disappear for a little bit on the edge of the city where maybe he could be safe. Just then guards began to circle the streets in a manner as to find him. Well that made all of this a lot more difficult to complete and all for one lousy attack against an Empire soldier who didn't even die. Szven'Xoc, king of the assassins, slipped into a house and quickly donned a cloak and tunic that were Empire colors. As he left he put the hood over his head and hid the steel bar in his belt. Now maybe he could get through the Empire soldiers.

[Quetzal]

Ri'Shei nodded and set out to spread the warning through the townspeople. She didn't want to cause them to panic, but they had to be aware enough of the potential danger to actually heed her warning. It was a delicate balance to find. Morrow had gone into the crowd and she followed, telling people on the opposite side to her ally while keeping him in view should he need assistance. Despite the lack of any uniform - that was for guards, of which she was not one - it was clear enough she was an Empire authority by her commanding voice and by the Empire-forged swords she wore. She had a badge of office should she need further proof. Papers would be of little use here, where most people were illiterate. She herself couldn't read. She could muddle her way through a letter with difficulty, but there had never been any point in her desert home or within the Empire. There was a growing need as she rose up in rank, however, and she'd been considering learning.

"Sir! Madam! My name is Ri'Shei, I'm with the Empire. No need to worry, I'm just here for your protection. Sir, if you could please return to your homes, my mind would be much more at ease," she spoke with authority but kept her voice gentle. Her height made her intimidating and that coupled with a warning of danger could provoke a less than calm response. "Yes, sir, I know it's annoying, but I'm afraid it's for your own benefit." A man raised an eyebrow at her. "I don't see any danger."

"Well, I do, so if you could please return to your home I would be grateful. At least do it for your wife, your children. You must want them to be safe." More people had gathered and were asking why. "There is a potentially violent criminal around. We have everything under control, but in case he tries anything, please return to the safety of your homes. Keep your children safe. There's no need to fear, my fellows and I are more than competent to protect you. You can trust the Empire to keep you safe. We just don't want you to get hurt, so please make yourselves secure," she called out to the crowd. She towered over all of them by at least a foot, so it wasn't hard to get their attention. It was quicker than persuading them all in turn; not only did she save repeating herself, but anyone looking doubtful followed like sheep when those convinced walked off home. A few stayed, but she argued until they reluctantly swallowed their pride and went home, saying they'd take their swords or spears or even farmer's tools and fight off this criminal threatening their families themselves. Ri'Shei felt pleased with herself when the streets were cleared. All those people safe because of us, she thought happily. The Empire did protect its people, whatever the Varden said. She didn't understand those rebels. How could they think they were inhuman just because they were happy the way things were? She wasn't a monster. She herself thought Galbatorix was cruel, yes, but he was doing what was best for his people at the expense of his own public image. He gave people law, order, peace until the Varden showed up. How could she and her friends be considered evil for believing it was right to impose laws to protect people? To keep their children safe, to stop conflict and crime like this assassin? She wanted nothing more than to slide her hands around his slimy little throat.

Faces pressed against the windows of houses and looked around frantically as an almighty crash sounded in the direction of the church. It was a great clanging as though something large and metal had been dropped. The bells of the church had been instructed to ring, and that sound was far from ringing. It had to be someone cutting the bells to stop them ringing - only that had been a mistake, because the crash they made when they fell was far louder and told of a much clearer danger than warning bells could have. Smoke began rising from the tower that poked over the thatched and occasionally tiled roofs of the houses.

Then the screams began. People in the houses looked panicked, but thankfully stayed inside. Ri'Shei looked at Morrow. "The church," she said simply, and ran off towards the building. Outside, a red-faced priest stood, panting and sweating, clearly having just fled the burning building behind him. There was a small group of people, some screaming, children crying.

"The church... I can't believe they would burn the bell tower! Luckily I was the only person inside. These people had all fled here seeking shelter, but thankfully they hadn't reached the doors before the fire started. I can't believe it... I can't... these people had hoped the gods would provide better shelter than their homes, and I can only hope they'll remain faithful after this," the priest was clearly in a state of shock.

Ri'Shei stared at the flames curling up the bell tower. Where will these people get the money for a new church? she thought, but didn't voice that aloud. No point worrying them any further. "Don't worry. We're going to catch whoever did this. These people look up to you, so please, calm them and be sure they return safe to their homes. Keep yourself safe, too. Pray, if it helps. Please excuse our leaving, we've a criminal to hunt down." Her voice was stern. She didn't care much for religion herself, but if these people had come to a church for shelter from danger, chances were their faith was an easy way to comforting them. The priest nodded and turned to organise the small group, while she turned to Morrow again. "Some of these houses are made from stone, but most are made more cheaply from wood. A lot have thatched roofs, too. We'll need some guards to watch the fire doesn't spread. In the meantime, the assassin can't have gone far. You lead the way." He was the man in charge, after all. Perhaps he would have an idea where the assassin went, because she hadn't a clue. Tracking wasn't her strong point. So far he'd made it easy enough, burning the bell tower and church... why? Out of spite? Was he trying to kill the Empire's people? Ri'Shei seethed with rage. He was trying to harm people under her protection, and she did not let people get away with that.

[Timmir]

As he lead the citizens back to their homes, he glanced back at Ri'shei to see how she was doing. He had to say, he was impressed with how she handle herself around the citizens. She maintained a careful balance of authority and compassion, something that he knew many other soldiers fail to achieve.

Still, as he continue helping the citizens back to their homes, something bothered him. Why haven't the bell began ringing yet? Sorna surely would have reach the church by now. Something must of happened. Something bad.

A loud sound of metal crashing against stone ground rang though the town. Morrow cursed under his breath as he turned to face the direction the sound came from, the church. It seemed this assassin had managed to beat Sorna to the church, cut down it's bell, and judging from the small pillar of smoke that was now appearing above it, had set it on fire. Well, at very least, he guess they got their warning bell. But now they got bigger things to worry about.

He rode Cyrus down towards the church as fast as he could. There was no telling how many people could be stuck in the church currently. When they arrived, it seem luck was on their side as a priest claimed that he was the only one inside. Yet as he looked around, leaving the priest and the people in Ri'shei's capable hands, he couldn't help, but wonder where Sorna was. She couldn't be dead, could she.

"Commander Morrow, what's going on?" He heard a familiar voice. He turned to see a young man in white robes carrying an unconscious woman over his shoulder.

"Quite abit Rhys. An assassin, or at least someone trying to pose as one, has been causing alot havoc. Including cutting the church's bell and setting it on fire. How's Sorna doing?" Morrow asked.

"I believe she's doing fine. Whoever attacked her seemed to have only knocked her out fortunatly. Still, I'm worried. It takes quite abit of effort to catch Sorna off guard like that."

Morrow nodded in agreement. Their assailant was by no means an ordinary person. Judging by how quickly he moved when he had attacked Ri'shei from earlier, he would almost say that the man wasn't even human. Still, why was he toying with them like this? This was the second time he could have killed one of them and didn't. And why was he trying to burn the church down? Was he trying to create disorder, or was he just plain stupid? It was hard for Morrow to tell.

Hearing Ri'shei's advice, he nodded as he returned his attention to Rhys. "Rhys, I need you to contact Forra and inform her whats going on. Then have her pass the information to Iven and the others before coming here and help you put out the flames. And keep your wits about you, the man may try to attack either you, Sorna, or the townsfolk while your doing this." Morrow order, receiving a stout nod from the robed man before he began concentrating.

Morrow then turned to Ri'shei with a small. "I must say, I'm quite impressed. You handle yourself quite well around people. Now then, let's try to catch this assassin and see if we can get him to tell us why he's doing all of this." With that, Morrow got Cyrus to move in a light jog as his eyes carefully studied his surroundings. Right now, no one else should be on the streets of this village except for the guards, the soldiers under his command, and Ri'shei. That leaves this assassin with less ways to hide himself. Morrow knew it wouldn't be long before the assassin reveals himself again.

[Brenton]

So they were clearing the streets of all citizens to make his hiding difficult. Well Szven'Xoc would toy with these fools some more just to show he was not someone to be trifled with. As the thought crossed the man's mind, he circled back to where he was behind the man on the horse and smiled in the shadows of his cloak. Slowly Szven drew the steel rod from his belt and dashed forward with inhuman grace to just behind the horse, placing blows at the horse's hooves. If they landed then the horse would be maimed and that would do some good.

Just for safe measure, Szven'Xoc swung twice more but this time at the man himself, and ran full tilt toward the buildings again. He slipped into the shadows where he could maneuver a bit without being tracked as easily. Szven'Xoc jumped up onto a roof and crouched down as he ran from roof to roof until he was two streets away but still in sight of the man and woman. Now to see what they would do in the situation he had just put them in.

Szven slipped the steel bar into his belt again and stayed crouched but his eyes scanned the roofs occasionally, passing over each with seeming disinterest. As his eyes went back to the two on the street, the assassin felt discomfort, a sort of sixth sense. He was used to listening to this feeling because it normally meant that trouble was nearby. So you have found me then, soldier of Galbatorix? Well how do you like the show so far? Don't think that just because I am unarmed means you can best me in a fight. Szven'Xoc spoke in a silky voice that betrayed his malicious intentions.

"I have no reason to beat you, but to just take you to Morrow who will deal with you accordingly. You have caused this village much harm by burning the towers and cutting the bells down just to attack our troops. That is punishable by public execution and no matter how important you are we will succeed in killing you." The soldier waved a hand and then four more men were surrounding Szven'Xoc who wasn't prepared for that. He went under and soon was bound by rope and being drug down into the streets before Ri'Shei and Morrow.

[Quetzal]

Another person knocked out but not killed. Ri'Shei couldn't understand why the assassin was doing this. Once he'd knocked Sorna out, he might easily have finished the job, but no. Hopefully she would be able to tell them more about her attacker when she woke up. They already knew it was a tall, large man with big spiky dark hair. With the citizens retreated to safety, he would be out of place as the only one still around the streets.

"Thanks," she acknowledged the compliment, looking elsewhere. The priest was helping the people outside the church find shelter, saying prayers to comfort the religious. She'd never been one for religion herself. There'd been all sorts of beliefs among the spartans in the desert, but they'd all contradicted themselves and most seemed ludicrous. She couldn't be bothered with gods and found the whole thing rather tiresome. Giving up time to pray, being close-minded towards people with differing views, using the same weak arguments like 'I read it in a book once' or 'this guy says so'... not to mention she didn't think there was a logical reason to believe in a god in the first place. Still, it offered people comfort, and that would make them shut up and leave her alone.

"You know, the church burning down isn't all bad. We can make a martyr of this town. The evil Varden burned down the church where innocent people were trying to escape slaughter, because they are that desperate to force people into obeying them. We can tell of how the brave Empire soldiers defended the village and its good people as well." It would certainly boost Empire support in this area. This village, at least, would never even consider supporting the Varden after this. The ones nearby would likely happily rally for the Empire, and a few more would hear about what happened and tell one another 'no, we can't support the Varden, remember what happened with the burning church'.

People had gone out to search so she supposed they shouldn't go far in case one came back and needed to tell them something. She made herself useful. Weaving a spell, she drew water from the air and whatever puddles and ponds she could find, lashing at the flames. The bell tower was doomed, but some might still be saved. If she could stop the fire going past a certain point... she didn't want to be seen damaging the church to create a gap the fire might not cross, so instead she doused walls and roof around the flames, trying to keep them wet so the fire could not advance. It was a losing battle. The fire evaporated the water quickly, carrying on its relentless burning. She didn't have enough water to put it out.

Disheartened, her spirits were lifted by the sight of a group tugging a man bound in rope. She stared at him as he neared, taking in his features and committing them to memory so she would recognise him should he escape and meet her again in future. He fit the description of the assassin who'd knocked her down without a doubt. "Kind of you to drop by," she rested her hands on the hilts of her two thin swords, letting him know she could defend herself. This could still be a trick, there could be other assassins hiding and using him as a lure. If so, she was ready for them. Not wanting to let the assassin catch onto her suspicions of a trick, she carried on acting as normal. She could see the steel bar on his person but did nothing to take it. Even bound men could try things if someone got that close. "Do you mind telling us what exactly you hoped to achieve in terrorising these innocent civilians and burning down there church? People were going there for shelter, you could have killed mothers and babies who thought the gods would protect them. We have to protect these villagers, see, and you've put them under such threat I imagine they would like to see your head separated from your body. Explain yourself." A deep hatred of this man filled her. Had he no care for law? Order? The safety of these civilians? By all means, have your fight, but leave the innocents out of the crossfire. Burning the church could hardly be described as 'crossfire', though - that had to be intentional harm.

[Timmir]

Morrow listened as Ri'shei told him that their was bright side to the church. While she did have a good plan, Morrow didn't like the idea of manipulating the citizens like that. Especially since they weren't sure who exactly it was that was responsible for the fire. It could as easily be blamed on the Empire as it could be blamed on the Varden for as long as the culprit's identity remained hidden.

As he began leaving to look for the assassin, he looked back to see Ri'shei staying behind to put out the fire. The confused Morrow abit as he had assumed that she was going to assist him in looking. He shook his head as he returned his attention to the task at hand. With that in mind, he Cyrus foward to try to find this assassin. Less did he know, the assassin was closer then he thought.

It happened very quickly. Cyrus bucked up as something hit him, throwing Morrow off of him in the process. He landed on his back with a small thud, and found himself being attacked. The first blow hitting the armor on his shoulder, causing it to dent a bit, and the second being deflected by his shield. He quickly retaliated with a quick thrust of his spear, but the assassin had run off by then.

Morrow cursed under his breath as he got up. Quickly, he checked his surroundings for any signs for his assailant, but their was no sign. He then looked over at Cyrus, seeing that one of his hind legs have been injured. It didn't seem anything to serious though. Rhys should be able heal it fairly easily, though until then, Morrow knew he couldn't ride him.

He looked back in time to see that Forra had arrived. Both she and Rhys then began to create a vortex around the flame, sucking all the oxygen out and smothering the flame. Morrow sighed in relief as that problem was now dealt with. Now then, to catch this annoying attacker and bring him to justice.

Hearing a group of men approaching, he turned to see a group of soldiers with a tied up prisoner. It seemed that they were able to apprehend the assassin, though how exactly was left to speculation. It seemed a bit too easy for this assassin to be capture like that. Morrow wouldn't put it pass him if their was some trickery involved. So he remained quiet as Ri'shei asked her questions. Tightening his grip on his shield and spear as he kept a careful watch on the assassin. He wasn't going to let this lowlife go if he had anything to say about it.

[Brenton]

Szven'Xoc waited until he was dragged to right in front of the two before he made his move. Seriously he had planned on being captured in the long run so he had a contingency plan in place. The assassin king raised his eyes up and smirked before whistling shrilly into the air, already finding the knots in his bonds that held him. A ranger was meant for stealth but Szven had trained in breaking loose so he snapped the ropes and rolled backward, grabbing a soldier and breaking his neck. At the same time he drew the steel bar and spat venomous words while he waited.

You serve a mad king who cows his people into submission but a true king doesn't have to fear that way and can get support by being themselves. Look to the elves for that. Still they are weak compared to what my nation can bring, and we will take down your puny Empire one piece at a time. As Szven'Xoc stopped talking he felt the disturbance and moved swiftly to one side, kicking out his foot to trip the soldier. A well placed blow and that man was dead as well.

Then all hell broke loose as arrows flew into their ranks and Szven instantly jumped to the edge of the group, laughing hysterically. Meet my people, the assassins of your own land who work and serve me. Soldiers fell to the arrows that flew from the buildings surrounding. This had all been a setup from the beginning. Now he could watch them die and laugh at their weakness.

[Quetzal]

Ri'Shei was glad to see the flames extinguished. That was one less thing they'd have to worry about, and it would show the citizens how they'd managed to protect their place of worship. It would need serious repairs, but at least it was still standing.

Just as she'd suspected, this had been planned as a trap. Good thing she hadn't tried going near him to relieve him of that steel bar, else she may have taken a hit for nothing. She didn't bat an eyelid when he whistled and broke free of his binds, not in the least bit surprised. Without missing a beat she uttered a word and a shield was around her, very faintly shimmering the dark amber of her magic when the light hit it. Aw, look at him, all proud of himself, she thought. He doesn't realise he's just spread support for the Empire and hatred and fear of his own people.

"A mad king who forces people into submission? And what exactly are you doing?" She accused. Killing people and burning down the church of a harmless village in an idiotic attempt to grow support came under forcing into submission in her book. She didn't actually like Galbatorix personally, but law and order was far better than these ideals the Varden preached about. Szven'Xoc was a perfect example of this; laughing like someone between a moron and utterly insane, attacking people who didn't think like him, pretending their ideas could work. She'd seen their ideas 'working' before. People were far too stupid, greedy and mean for people like Szven'Xoc's ideals to work. It sounded great in principle, but then you could get people killing over the tiniest thing like being told they weren't as good as someone else with a sword, finding they got away with it, so doing it again. People like Szven'Xoc would decide they liked being powerful, so would make themselves far better off than anyone else and act the gallant equal of the peasants while they killed anyone who said that wasn't the case while sitting in their big halls. Fights would be frequent and a lot of time and effort would go into those. Less so on things that were actually important, like getting in the harvest, ensuring they had enough food for everyone, educating and clothing people, providing medicine. People would starve, freeze or die of preventable illness. All the while, people like Szven'Xoc would try something that was pointless in those areas, showing off how good they were at fighting, forgetting the real issues as their kingdom died around them. They knew nothing of how to really manage a country, they were just angry warriors. It was a harsh truth, but a truth none the less.

How she hated them. She marveled at how someone as stupid as Szven could get people to follow him. Probably had other people to deal with uninteresting things like food, or perhaps they just stole from villages they tore down. The arrows clattered harmlessly off her shield, which she multiplied to surround every non-magic user with a little bubble. She kept them small so they only deflected arrows that would actually have hit a person, saving her energy. Whatever he was trying to do by saying 'assassins of your own land', it wasn't working. Of course people in the Empire's own land wouldn't all serve the Empire. She knew that some would serve other groups, including the assassins. This wasn't news to her.

She still hadn't drawn her blades so her hands were free. She just looked at Szven'Xoc, shrugging her shoulders and raising her eyebrows in a 'what are you on mate this isn't working' expression. "Cowardly knives in the dark, killers for the highest bidder. Ooooh, you escape a rope and have a few friends, big freaking deal. Forgive me if I'm not impressed by you or your band of paid murderers. Look, I'm sure you mean well, but if you're the sort of guy who likes to kill people in their sleep because someone paid him to, I don't think you'll be any better a king than any one of these men here," she waved a hand at the smattering of Empire soldiers. "A good leader needs to be smart, and your actions make no sense. A good leader should protect his people, and you nearly burned alive a group of innocent villagers, women, children, elderly included. You've terrorised an entire village. And you say we're the bad guys? We're just trying to protect these people." There was venom in her voice, and a lot of it.

[Timmir]

Morrow wasn't surprised at all when the assassin had broke through his bindings. It was an obvious trap, and the strange whistle he made only seconds earlier only furthered that thought. His grip on his spear tightened as he watched the assassin killed one of the soldiers, and slayed another as he spoke. This man was clearly insane. How anyone with sense would follow this man was beyond Morrow.

Arrows then flew through the air, heading towards several of the remaining soldiers. However, they had bounced harmlessly off the soldiers as magical shields protected. Morrow had originally suspected Rhys to have done this, but there was no way for him to truly tell. Magic was never something he was really found of. Though he had to admit it definitely had it's uses. Especially now as the sorceress who had helped put out the flame had now created a strong windstorm above them, preventing anymore arrows from flying, and battering against anyone who dared to stand on the roofs.

"Don't waste your breath on him Ri'shei. Men like him only live to kill and be killed. Nothing less, nothing more." Morrow told his companion as he stared at the murderer standing in front of him, "If you were planning to instill fear or hesitation in me or my men, consider your mission a failure. We'll always stand strong against those who dare terrorize those who we swore to protect. Now either surrender peacefully, or face a swift judgement." He told the murderer, taking a stance. He knew full well which choice this murderer would take, and was more then willing to oblige him.

[Brenton]

Szven'Xoc laughed at what the two Empire followers had to say as he yanked a dagger out of his belt and spun with elven speed to cut down another soldier. Ri'Shei thought of him as a mad man who stood no chance of ever being a good king with his actions being so erratic compared to others who had done the same thing. Well Szven growled and his skin rippled, instantly bulging over bones and being covered by thick fur the color of black night skies. His body elongated and a large tail shot from Szven'Xoc's rear end to hail the world once more. Soon he was fully looking lupine in the face but draconic in the body and tail with some lupine genetics involved.

There are more people in this world than you could possibly ever know, Empire warrior, so how can you know I will not be a good king? I was raised a king and the assassins of Aragrael City trust me fully. See I am a far better ruler than your king will ever be. Oh and we don't kill in the middle of the night when our target is asleep. It becomes too easy.

The fear and hesitation was not meant for you but for your people who are the real commanders of your army. You can try to pull this off as a Varden attack but everyone knows that Rangers are rare in Alagaesia and none of them are with the Varden. Now then, stand strong all you want but I seriously have another village to make before it gets dark. With that, Szven'Xoc spun and slayed three more soldiers before streaking off, dropping to all four legs to run faster. He ran until they were past the village and then stood up and shifted back into a human.

[Quetzal]

Ri'Shei nodded in response to Morrow's comment. What he said was true. Szvon'Xoc appeared to be one of those guys who only saw battles to be fought in the world. There were a good few of those within the Empire's ranks, but most of them were noted and made certain to never be granted any power over other people. They would be pushed out to fight as prized warriors, but they weren't good for anything else. Galbatorix himself might be a bit like that, she wasn't sure as she had only knew people who knew him, but he didn't go out and fight himself excepting extreme circumstances, thankfully. A lot of her life involved fighting and training, but she was well aware that there were other things to life. Learning about the world never interested her and was difficult when your reading skills limited you to just about finding your way around letters with orders sent to you and no more, but there was music, dancing, talking. Even among enemies, she knew she should talk and negotiate before resorting to violence. Debating and politics was fun to her. She liked a good argument.

Finally Szven'Xoc did something that surprised her. His features hadn't quite fit into her idea of most existing races, but he'd seemed elven enough to make her think he might be some kind of elf. She'd heard of people who could shift into things like a wolf but with a bit of dragon in them. Never having seen one, she hadn't been certain if they really existed. Clearly they did. He could still talk in that form, which was odd. He claimed he who lived for death would be a great king. Modest, too. Ri'Shei hated him all the more for that. He'd done nothing but boast about himself all the time, something she loathed in a person. It was frankly rather pathetic when a man shouted about how great and strong he was in her opinion.

"What a knob," she said simply as he ran off. If he wanted to frighten the commanders of their army, he should have gone and attacked them instead of the innocent people. Well, he'd hit her in the leg, but that had just made her confused and annoyed rather than scared. He'd frightened the commoners for sure, but she for one had been inspired with hatred and anger in fear's stead.

"We're not 'pulling this off as a Varden attack', this was a Varden attack. The villagers are all in their homes, they can't know he's a Ranger. They do know he and his pals are assassins, and everyone knows the assassins kill for the Varden. Not to mention how he openly spoke against the Empire." Ri'Shei tried to think which village he meant to attack next. There were a few in the area. Perhaps he meant to attack them all? They needed to get there first and get the people to safety. "We'd better go after him, he said he'd attack another village. We should leave a few here to guard the people and inform them of what's happened, and take the rest to warn and protect all nearby villages." She said this to Morrow. They needed to act quickly too, as Szven'Xoc would probably get there before they did. She wouldn't allow innocent men, women and children to be butchered in the name of - what? Trying to show the Empire his strength? Anyone could beat up or kill an unarmed peasant, all that showed was cruelty. If anything, what happened only proved how weak the assassins were to stoop so low. If all they could hope to harm were unprotected peasants, that made them a pretty useless force. The Empire wouldn't underestimate them, but they clearly weren't much of a problem to their armies. The peasants, however, she cared about and was sworn to protect.

[Timmir]

Morrow was shocked to see the assassin transform into some type of humanoid abomination. It seemed that Morrow had received his answer, yet his nerves had managed to get the better of him. This creature was nothing he had ever seen before. While he wanted to strike the beast down where it stood, all he could do was listen as it taunted them before running off. Morrow growled as he knew he had just missed his chance to end this once and for all. He wasn't going to let it go again.

The knight listened as Ri'shei advised him what they should do next. "It's just what I was thinking." He told her as he turned to see Rhys healing Cyrus' woinded leg, "You both heard her. I need one of you to go to Iven, and tell him what happened here. He should know what to do from there. Meanwhile Ri'shei and I will chase after the assassin. Speaking of which, how's Cyrus' leg doing?"

"It should... Be fine now... Just be careful on him, okay." The sorcerer answered in tired voice. Having expended more energy then he had planned.

"Good." Morrow remarked as he got on his horse. "There's no time to waste. I have an inkling on what he is planning, and I don't like it." He told her as he headed off.

As they went after the assassin, Morrow would take a moment to speak his mind about something that's been bothering him. "You know. Both you and the assassin seemed to have a similar problem. You both assume too much about what other people may, or may not, know." He told her bluntly as he thought back to her earlier comment about how everyone knows assassins work for the Varden. It seemed to Morrow as bold an assumption as the assassin's that everybody knew what a Ranger was, which is a blatant falsehood. In fact, Morrow didn't even know what a Ranger was until now, and he was more knowledgeable about this type of stuff then most.

"What is a Ranger exactly anyways?" Morrow wondered aloud, "I mean, I'm assuming that our assassin is one, and that he's not referring to the elite scouts within the Empire's army."