Jared moved quickly through the snow, his numb limbs struggling with the weight of his armor. He could hear them pursuing, not far behind now. Every step was agony, his leather boots frosted with snow and ice from the day's of pursuit.
He knew that his time was almost over, he'd known it since the ambush on the caravans. His men had been no match for the onslaught. Within moment's the majority had either thrown down their weapons or fled the scene. Only a handful, including himself, had fought their foe until finally overwhelmed and wounded at which point they'd fled.
One by one they had been taken, hunted like wild animals. Jared was the last of his brethren, the only one strong enough to have made it this far. He had come so close to the border, so close to the civilized world, the difference between life and death. Instead they'd caught up, the savages who knew these wild forests and deathly landscapes.
He slowed his escape, coming to a halt in a large clearing and drawing his sword from it's scabbard. The long blade shone with the reflected light of the setting sun, heavy in his hand. His numb and exhausted limbs struggled to maintain balance. The trees surrounded him, dark and foreboding, hiding his foes from view.
He couldn't see them but he knew they were there, watching him, assessing him. Long blonde curls clung to his face, plastered there by his sweat and the melting snowfall. His blue eye's shone with the anger that burned inside of him, daring his attackers to approach. Finally they came.
They approached him from five front's, emerging from the forest as sleek as wild cats. Their lithe, lean bodies on display, baring almost no armor. They were all beautiful and deadly. He'd heard stories of these Huntresses. Born in the wild and raised for combat. They preyed on both the weak and strong, testing their abilities. Many men had fallen, underestimating their prowess or falling to the lure of their bodies.
Jared stood as still as a statue. He could feel the warmth of his blood rushing to his manhood as he watched the women approach. His desire for their beauty was almost too much, only his desire for his life won out.
"You've done well." One of the women called out to him. "For a man that is."
She stood only five strides from him, her dark skin a stark contrast against the snow. She was tall, almost as tall as him, clad in only undergarments that scarcely concealed her modesty. A long cloak hung from her shoulders and thin knee high boots protected her feet from the snow. She stared at him, her dark eye's two deep pools, drinking him in.
"Take him." She ordered, her full lips forming a cruel smile.
One of the women sprung at Jared from behind. Too slow, she fell to his blade, it's sharp edge tearing through her body. Another lunged forward to avenge her fallen comrade, her blonde hair pulled back in a pony tail revealing a beautiful face shattered by anger. She was fast, darting at Jared with two medium length daggers.
Jared stepped backwards and parried her attacks, momentarily distracted by her cleavage that bulged before her. His blade spun in a wide arc, countering her own momentum and pushing her back. The whistle of a blade to his left caught his attention just in time for him to evade a vicious strike from another one of the women. His shoulder hit the ground hard as he rolled to the right, coming up quickly on his firm, strong legs.
Jared turned to face his latest foe. A short woman with flowing red hair and large green eyes, naked apart from a thick cloak that billowed behind her in the breeze. His gaze was instantly drawn to her generously sized breast's, the small pink nipples hard and pointed. She snaked forward gracefully, the hair between her legs more entrancing than the long thin blade in her hand.
Her sword slashed at his face, missing by a tiny amount as Jared's survival instincts kicked back in. Once again nothing but his own blade mattered, the sharp steal he held in his hand, not the flesh between his legs. He pivoted, bringing his sword around in a two handed slash to crash against the reds slim blade, knocking her off her feet.
She lay on her back, staring at him wide eye'd in terror. Her chest heaved as she gulped in air, her leg's kicking at the snow in a desperate attempt to put some distance between them. The two remaining women stepped between the fallen girl and Jared, watched closely by the dark woman who stood off to the side.
The blonde charged at him first, her two blades whirling only to be knocked aside by Jared. Her companion was on him a moment later, a short axe in hand. Jared watched her advance, drinking in the situation. She was the smallest of the five with black hair cut short to her shoulders. She wore a vest of chainmail leaving her arms and below her waist completely bare. Jared stared at the dark bush between her legs admiringly before bringing his blade up in a cruel attack, taking her between them, cleaving her almost in half.
"Enough!" The dark woman ordered.
Jared turned to face her. Her eye's smoldered with an intense fury. They had under estimated him and two of her friends had paid a dear price.
"Had enough you whore?" Jared demanded, hoping to lure her into a reckless attack.
She didn't answer. Instead she marched forward, drawing two slim curved blades. Jared brought his own blade up in defense as she leapt towards him, her speed surprising him. Their blades clashed together again and again as they danced in the clearing. One false move and Jared knew he was dead.
The dark woman rolled away from him, her cloak snapping as she rose. Jared pressed the attack, only to be met by another assault from her. His arms ached beyond comprehension. Exhaustion had him. The fight alone would have been enough to tire him, combined with the fact he had been on the run for days meant he was beyond saving. He staggered towards her, the last of his energy completely drained. His strike went wide and he collapsed into the snow.
It was over for him. He could hear the woman's footsteps crunching towards him in the snow. He attempted to stand but was brought down by the weight of the heavy metal plate he wore over his chest. The blow caught him in the back of his head, heavy, crushing the light out of him.
Part Two
