The man in black fled across a frozen mountain peak. He had run for nearly 3 hours attempting to evade his pursuers. The running battle had started after the man had killed the current ruler of Dorwich Keep. The assassination had been carried out flawlessly, if it hadn't been for the young servant girl anyway.
The oversight of the young girl was one he could have remedied easily with his blade, but even killers had lines they wouldnt cross. He hadn't even had a chance to shush her before she screamed for the guards.
He had still been able to escape and was forced to kill around half his pursuers. Now exhausted, wounded and out of options he made a decision. He had little strength left but he had to try. He stopped running and turned to face the twelve remaining guards still in pursuit. If he hadn't been wounded during his escape he could have easily taken them. As it stood right now all his power was being used to stop the bleeding. It left him with only one choice.
The man grit his teeth and drew his sword and seax. The hood of his black cloak blew away from his face as the cold wind howled across the mountain. It revealed a middle aged man, dark haired and grey eyed. A scar began at his hairline and ran beside his eye. It disappeared into the black cloth that covered the bottom half of his face.
The assassin stood ready as the torches approached. He hoped the guards were as tired as him and his last trick would have the desired effect. If not, he had made his peace with death long ago. He would rather go out in battle than die an old man in his bed. The thought disturbed him.
The guards slowly approached and surrounded their target. They were out of breath and looked not much better off than the man they pursued. The guard captain stepped forward and spoke. "Finally decided to accept your fate I see." said the captain, "Please do put up a fight, I wouldn't want to...
His words were cut short when he saw the assassin whispering to his blades. While the man was whispering the blades began to glow as intricate golden patterns appeared. When he was done his now glowing golden eyes surveyed the guards. Wide eyed fear on all their faces.
"It's him!" a guard cried. "God save us!" A call for retreat was yelled by another guard as they sheathed their weapons and ran. Only the guard captain remained, frozen in shock.
"Just you and me now." said the assassin. "What were you saying before?" His voice sounded like he had gravel in his throat. The words coming out as a low growl. Almost more beast than man.
"You can't be him." the captain muttered. "He's dead." The look on his face betraying him.
The assassin moved with terrifying speed and appeared directly in front of the captain. Dagger pressed into his neck. "You have one chance to run." he whispered."Do not waste this mercy."
The captain dropped his sword and backed away, not saying a word. Then he turned and ran as fast as his legs would carry him. stumbling and falling as he whimpered.
The assassin watched his figure disappear over the ridge as the glow faded from his eyes and weapons. He turned away pulling his hood up and collapsed. He had used every ounce of energy and strength he had left to put on a show. He was already regretting it.
He had revealed himself to the guards too hastily he thought. He may have been better off dying on that mountain. He hoped that the guards story wouldn't be believed and that they would be punished for coming up with such an excuse for not catching him. Somehow he knew that would not be the case.
The man struggled back to his feet and began moving again. He needed to put more distance between himself and the guards before he could rest. They would be bringing reinforcements before long and he needed the headstart.
He managed to make his way down the side of the mountain and into the edge of the forest. He wanted to make it to a cache of supplies he had stashed just for this situation, in his current state there was no way he could make it that far tonight. He needed rest and time to heal.
After finding the small cave he had marked during his journey to kill the Duke, he drug himself inside. He chastised himself for not stashing his supplies here but he had made that decision before he found the cave. He dug into the pouch secured at his belt and pulled out the last item he had with him, a single healing pill. It was of good quality but still would not be enough to completely repair the damage. He just hoped it would stop the bleeding so he could sleep.
The pill sent a warm sensation through his body and managed to stem the bleeding. He laid back and sighed with relief. He took a moment to recall the events of the past few years. He had slaughtered his way through the men responsible and been down to the last two names on his list. After that bastard Gregorn Ironglaive died earlier tonight there was just one remaining. He wouldn't allow himself to feel any sense of accomplishment, he wanted nothing more than for none of this to have happened.
The assassins eyes flashed with rage and hatred and he remembered the events that brought him down this path. The deaths of those he was sworn to protect at the hands of those traitorous bastards reignited a fire in his chest. He willed himself to calm down and rested back against the edge of the shallow cave. Bruised, bloodied and exhausted. There was nothing he could do about it tonight.
His thoughts drifted and soon his breathing had grown shallow and steady. With the help from the healing pill he drifted off to sleep to regain the strength he had lost.
Less than two hours later he was awoken by the sounds of armor clanging and muffled voices. He was better off than he was several hours ago but still in a poor state. He knew his location would be discovered and he needed to think and act fast if he wanted to survive. The trick wouldnt work this time and he knew a fight was coming.