Thread: A Darker Shade of Night: Dragondancer+BlisteredBlood

Laela released her hold on her opponent and forcefully executed an effortless backflip out of his leg lock, landing ready to mount a second attack. As she paused for only a heartbeat, she watched with enthusiastic interest the mans speed and grace as he propelled himself off of his back and into fighting position, his hand immediately loosening the bindings of his broadsword and curling adeptly around the handle of the formidable weapon in one smooth motion. Laela perceived his expert, confident stance and ruthless gleam in his eye, and relished the thought of engaging this man in what she recognized would be excellent swordplay of the highest level. If she only had a sword. What she needed was to find out how the man was connected to Vardon, and what that detestable son of a bitch was up to. What she wanted was to extend this arousing combative encounter just for a little longer - it had been a very long time since she had faced an opponent she knew nothing about, but who resisted her with fearlessness, strength and skill - a long time since anyone had gotten under her skin like this. As he began to slowly back away from her, she knew she should pounce and attack, bend him to her will as she broke him and drank away his strength, so she could force the information from him that she needed. After all, Vardon had been after her and her family with assassination in mind for decades. Instead, she offered the man one last chance to explain himself, to come clean as to why he was aligned with Vardon. Of course, she couldnt just ask sweetly at this point...and yet, his response to her taunt was as if a quiver full of ice-cold arrows had been propelled directly into her heart. That conniving bastard! Vardon had somehow discovered a tragedy in this mans past, manipulating him and setting him against her as the one who had committed the offenses. And he believed Vardon, that much was obvious. Even more obvious was the fact that he entirely loathed her without even knowing that she was the one he sought - to wreak terrible vengeance upon, she had no doubt. And she had not made a very good first impression otherwise, she groaned. Laela was unaccustomed to feeling uncertainty - she was one who always knew what she wanted and went after it aggressively - and almost always successfully. But her brief moment of atypical hesitation cost her dearly. Before she could settle on her next move with this man, now that she was possessed of this new information, the brown-eyed warrior reached swiftly into the small bag on his hip, and withdrew a small object which he proceeded to hurl at the ground in front of her. As the object impacted against the ground with a dull metallic clang, immediately a blinding white flash of light burst forth, violently illuminating the darkness within its proximity. Laela shrieked in pain as her hyper-sensitive eyes and skin burned with the chemical brilliance emanating from the explosive device. She flung her arms up over her eyes a split-second too late, falling to the hard cement in agony, her skin and eyes on fire as if seared by an actual flame, her vampiric body being extremely vulnerable to light. Not having seen or heard her tormenters tactical retreat, she assumed he was rushing in for the killing blow while she was temporarily blinded and in anguish, and roared in defiance as she thrashed around to avoid his death blow. But no blow came. Laela slowly picked herself up from the cold concrete, and stumbled blindly into the yawning dark entrance of the parking garage, feeling her way along the rough outside wall, and continuing around the corner, keeping her hand against the inside wall as a reference point - and as support. Inside the welcoming darkness, she continued to the far corner, and slid shakily down the wall until she was sitting with her back propped against it. She leaned her head back against the hardness, keeping her painful eyes closed and controlling her breathing. Slowly the soothing cool air began to leach away the sting of the flash bombs light from her flesh. More slowly, the pain in her abused eyes began to ease, her eyesight gradually returning. Having accelerated healing properties in her blood and body, Laelas cells had immediately gone to work at the first moment of damage, repairing themselves efficiently and speedily, and before too long she was fully healed. And sobered. Laela stood up in one graceful but rapid move, and headed back out into the night with purpose. Yes, she could track her new foe and continue their battle to its conclusion this night. No more holding back. But her goal was to annihilate the treacherous beast at the heart of her affliction, not pursue the various minions he may send to attack her. Perhaps she could strike indirectly through this new contact...but first she needed to learn more about this man. Which meant an unpleasant encounter of another kind, as she walked purposefully back toward downtown, intent on spending as little time as possible in the company of the distasteful rat-faced man.