Chapter 14- From the Ashes, What Remains, pt 2
"Tang"
"Tang tang"
"Clang"
Urthrina's curved long knives struck and rang out against Jafningi's scimitars rhythmically as she parried his slashes and thrusts easily. They moved about the chaos like two old lovers dancing to the musical beat of the weapons colliding, but for them nothing could be further from the truth.
"You know Jaf," She teased as they broke away from each other momentarily and hefted their weapons as they searched for openings in each other's guard to attack, "I never liked you..."
"Just as well," He returned with a growl, "There are only a few I detest more than you!"
She laughed at him and danced backwards away from his slashing blades as he surged forward angrily. Her blades tanged loudly twice as she deflected his thrusts then jumped backwards high in the air, landed and cartwheeled before whistling a series of high trilling whistles. He was in pursuit as she danced and jumped away at the last second before each attack. Thrusting a long knife into its sheath, she whipped out a small handheld crossbow, leveled it at him, and pulled the trigger. A clip of four small bolts unloaded quickly and slammed into his chest driving him backwards, halting his pursuit, but was deflected and mitigated by a coat of platemail. Ripping a bolt stuck between the plates of his armor out and throwing it away, he snarled, "Getting desperate are you? Resorting to frivolous tricks to beat me!"
"Not even," She laughed as the crossbow folded up and she slipped it back into its holster before drawing her long knife again, "I could have killed you at will, any time I wanted. I just wanted you to feel like you had a chance."
He snarled and charged only to suddenly feel a hand grab the knap of his neck and wrench him backwards and slam him to the ground knocking the wind out of him. With a cough and a wheeze he blinked his eyes to clear his vision enough to see the snarling teeth of a large she-wolf as she squeezed his throat with her massive clawed hands. Stabbing upward, he caught her cheek with the tip of his sword and thrust upward lacerating her eye and brow.
The she-wolf howled in pain as she staggered backwards. Jafningi rolled to follow her when eight pointed sven'dahl forelegs speared him from the shoulders and chest, down his abdomen, to his legs pinning him to the ground. They hissed down at him as he coughed up blood and slashed at the joints of their legs only to have a red furred male fox dart in and grab his wrist and twist, breaking it with an audible snap as Urthrina caught his other arm and knocked his scimitar away.
"You see now, don't you," She growled in his face, "You forgot that I am not a Blade Master, rather, I am the Master Hunter and I never hunt without my pack!"
"Tr..ait...orous whore bitch," He cursed through gritted teeth.
"Against traitors! Absolutely!" She laughed through a sneer as she asked, "Do you really think you're insulting me? Our Spider Goddess is also the Queen of Prostitutes!"
Looking up at the fox on Jafningi's other side she continued, "Herud'nag, he hurt your mate. I leave the killing blow to you."
Jafningi's eyes opened wide and he had time to open his mouth in protest before Herud'nag's hand grasped his throat and his claws dug in. There was a strangled yell, and then gurgling as blood spurted across the fox and Urthrina. Standing up she looked for the next battle to be fought while Herud'nag moved to the silver she-wolf. Accalia held her hands tight against her face and eye, and it took a lot of persuasion from him to convince her to let him see the damage. He hissed at her destroyed eye before taking her red armband and tying it over the injury.
Urthrina found Beinbalkr standing fighting with three of her maids just in time to see one brutally killed as four soldiers attacked in a coordinated assault. Turning back she looked at Herud-nag and Accalia and signed at her sven'dahl to move out as she shouted, "Herud-nag, take Accalia and retreat, you've done what you can. Meet up with us at the Kennels."
"Yes, Huntress," He answered and immediately began leading Accalia away from the fighting.
When Urthrina turned back it was to seeing Beinbalkr's last two maids falling to the ground dead from a sword that impaled them both. Charging towards the Pantler to give her assistance, four of Jafningi's closest friends and lieutenants took positions between her and Beinbalkr.