As the authorities halted, overwhelmed by the surging crowd and the risk of harm, Kade and Markin sprinted through the buildings, their pursuit intensifying. With quick movement, Kade yanks a wheel from a passing carriage, flinging it at Markin, who effortlessly leaped over it.
Markin Razzio:
"Earth Magic, Rokugani!"
Markin retaliated with a rapid barrage of rocks, causing Kade to shield his face, absorbing the hits until reaching his mana limit and sustaining wounds from the relentless assault.
Markin Razzio(INT):
"Damn! This guy just won't quit–"
Kade Northwood:
"Thunder Magic, Lightning Javelin."
Using the mana he absorbed, Kade executes another leap, launching a lightning javelin that strikes Markin's side, sending him flying into a neighboring house, causing harm to its occupants. Kade pursues Markin, finding him caved in the living room wall. With a powerful jump, Kade drives a knee into Markin's chest, shattering the wall and carrying both combatants into yet another house.
In a tense confrontation, both men rose to their feet, assuming determined fighting stances as they breathed heavily, their faces marked by a mixture of blood, sweat, dirt, and rainwater.
Kade Northwood:
*Cough*
"Still alive, huh?"
"Just stay down, and let this be easier than it needs to be."
Markin Razzio:
"You can take my magic when I'm dead, bas##rd."
As the darkness in Kade's sclera faded to white, onlookers in the living room watched in awe. Suddenly, multiple authorities stormed the house, armed with flintlocks, blunderbusses, muskets, and sabers.
Officer #1:
"You two! Stand down now!"
Officer #2:
"Surrender bas##rds!"
Surprisingly, Kade and Markin pivoted, standing back to back, ready to confront the approaching officers.
Kade Northwood:
"This means nothing, once we're done with these idiots, we're back to–"
Officer #3:
"You two! Shut up and surrender yourselves!"
A sly grin appeared on Kade's face as he casually wiped blood from his lips with his thumb, while Markin spat a stream of blood onto the ground. Their unwavering gazes fixed on the surrounding officers, maintaining their defiant fighting stances.
Officer #4:
"This is the last warning, surrender–"
Markin Razzio:
"EARTH MAGIC, RISING PILLAR ×4!"
Markin unleashed four pillars from the earth, catching officers off guard, while Kade, despite a few bullets striking his thigh, and grazing his waist. Kade swiftly flips a table into the air, and kicks the table mid-air that sends it flying toward a group of officers.
In a swift move, Kade thwarted an officer's attempt to pierce his stomach with a saber, redirecting the attack into another assailant who had Markin in their sights. Following this, Kade delivered a powerful uppercut to the first officer's chin and executed a flashkick, aiming directly at the disoriented officer's face, before skillfully retreating from the approaching group of officers
Switching to Markin, he swiftly takes hold of a flintlock from an officer's pocket, deftly positioning himself behind another officer to fire at an approaching threat, concluding with a forceful strike to the forehead with the flintlock's back.
Kade's front kick propels the officer backward; as he stumbles towards Markin, a swift lariat from Markin sends the officer flipping and crashing to the ground.
Markin executes a powerful roundhouse kick, sending the last officer stumbling into a wall, while Kade and Markin unleash a relentless barrage of punches and elbows to the unfortunate man's stomach, chest, face, ribs, and chin.
Exhausted, Kade and Markin halt abruptly, allowing the battered man to slump into unconsciousness.
Markin Razzio:
"Oi... you wanna rest first...?"
"I'm getting sick and tired of fighting back to back."
Kade Northwood:
"Yeah... yeah, alright..."
Gasping for air, they grimly bear the shallow wounds, Kade leaning on a table, and Markin perching on a bullet-ridden couch. Markin sheds his sweat and blood-soaked dress shirt, exposing his bare chest. He swiftly wraps the torn fabric around his bicep, cinching it tight.
Kade removes his now-tattered cloak, heading to a cupboard where he uncovers "Griffins Gold" whisky. He sat on the wooden counter, and with gritted teeth, he roughly pulls the bullet pellets from out of his thighs using his fingers, pouring the alcohol over his wounds, eliciting a painful groan before he bites his lip.
Kade, his thigh adorned with a tattered cloak bearing shallow bullet wounds, skillfully wraps it around, applying firm pressure to staunch the flow of blood. Returning to the table, he leans back, clutching his shoulder, while Markin observes his movements, nursing his own injured bicep.
Markin Razzio:
"Hey..."
"Just asking, but, why do you want my magic so bad? What do you plan to do with it if I do lose?"
Kade Northwood:
"...With your shapeshift magic, I can be in plain sight without the worry of being hunted down."
"I have big things planned for this world, and with your power, they will flow much more easier."
Markin Razzio:
"Right..."
"Hey, if one of us does dies..."
"I'd like to know if you ever wanted to have a family."
Kade Northwood:
"What?"
Markin Razzio:
"I know I know, it sounds stupid, especially at a time like this. But I'd just like to know... you don't need to answer if you don't want to."
In tense silence, both men gaze at the ground, surrounded by the distant chaos of fleeing crowds and the ringing of bells echoing outside.
Kade Northwood:
"No."
"For me, I am not the type of man, who will settle for anything until I know I'm ready."
Markin Razzio:
"...If that's what you think, then oddly, I respect that."
"The life I live, is a life I live unsure. I've always wanted to have kids and a wife, but I didn't know if I should stop or not."
"So, as of now, I'm unsure..."
Kade Northwood:
"..."
"...Life's choices echo the complexity of love; in deciding who you love more, strive not to select the better person, but rather embrace the one who, in their essence, makes you better."
Markin bestowed Kade with a puzzled expression, finding himself mildly astonished by the eloquence of someone seemingly younger, whose command of language conveyed a wisdom beyond their apparent age.
Markin Razzio(INT):
"Now that I realize it, this guy seems quite younger than me, he's probably in his early twenties yet he talks as if he was older."
"... I'm really getting quoted on by someone younger than me, weird..."
Kade Northwood:
"Hey."
Kade straightened up from the table, his fatigue dissipating as he locked eyes with Markin.
Kade Northwood:
"You ready?"
Markin Razzio(INT):
"Right..."
"I forgot me and this guy were fighting."
Markin sat quietly before rising from the couch.
Markin Razzio:
"Yeah, I'm ready."
Kade and Markin exited the ruined house, stepping into the wet streets amidst the rain, as the segment of the kingdom was evacuated; soon after, they assumed their fighting stances for yet another standoff.
From a distance, five silhouetted figures, appearing to be women, observed discreetly from the rooftop of an inn, concealed within the shadows.
??? #1:
"Uhh, Talia? Shouldn't we be stopping those two?"
??? #2:
"Nah, let's those two play it out, and once they're done, then we'll strike."
??? #3:
"This isn't what knights do, you idiot."
??? #4:
*Yawn*
"It'll be good for conserving energy."
"Just sayin'."
Talia Nerfreno #7:
"Hey sis... where are the other two girls?"
Siriana Nerfreno #1:
"They're sleeping on the job... again."
??? #3:
"Those two idiots need to stop partying."
??? #2:
"It's not like it matters–"
"Oh! Look! They're gonna start!"