Thread: ᴏɴᴇ ʜᴏᴍᴇ ʟᴏsᴛ, ᴀɴᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ᴡᴏʀᴛʜ ғɪɢʜᴛɪɴɢ ғᴏʀ [ ɢᴇᴍ x ᴡᴏʟᴢᴇʀᴇx ]

Korm was more or less expecting all hell to break loose when he knocked Jack for a loop. After all, the four men behind him looked like they could decently handle themselves, and he figured he might really have to let loose in order to be able to take them all down and be sure that no one else got hurt in the process. He hoped that the troupe would have enough sense to run, or at the very least get out of harms way. What he was not expecting was them to jump in the fray and do half his work for him. First, Eli's attack with her fire was...ingenious. In the heat of things, he really only caught glimpses of it, but he heard the man throw himself into the fountain. He...honestly couldn't decide whether that was more impressive or more attractive than anything he'd seen all day. It was the boys and the dwarf girl who really surprised him, however. Just as Jack came roaring back with a punch of his own, he caught sight of the girl tossing the man around as if he weighed nothing at all and then keeping him planted on the ground with one foot. What the hell? he thought as he stepped back to avoid Jack's colossal punch, What kind of traveling show is this? Jack it turned out, was a very skilled fighter. Despite being thrown off balance by missing with his haymaker AND having a bloody nose, he didn't lose his cool. Keeping a fighting stance, he kept pressing towards Korm with his fists flying. Oh, he was very good. And then of course, the youngest members of the troupe had the third guy knocked out cold in no time at all. Korm took on precious second to stare at them all in a certain amount of disbelief and awe before having to dodge yet another punch. This time, however, he returned the favor and gave Jack a jaw-shattering uppercut to remember him by. Anyone else would have been knocked out cold, but the enforcer seemed to be just as tough as he looked. Faltering back a few steps, he clutched his jaw for a moment and paused. Korm waited for him to try again, but the man paused. Then, strangely, the barest hint of a smile crossed his face. Korm's instinct as a warrior probably saved his life at that point. He frowned, wondering what Jack was up to, and then his senses kicked into overdrive. In the same instant, he realized his mistake and twisted violently to the side. In the chaos of the fight, he'd been so enthralled with the troupe and their fights that he had completely forgotten about the fourth member of Jack's gang. He couldn't see him, which could only mean that he was behind him. As he tried to get out of the way of the attack he was sure was coming, Korm sucked in a breath as he felt the cold steel of a knife cut a nasty gash in the side of his ribs. If he hadn't reacted so fast, that knife probably would have entered his kidney or lungs. Cursing his own foolishness, he let out a bestial roar. It was a battle-cry, a bellow that came from deep within his chest and reverberated with primal power. He may have been a good man, an honorable one, but that in no way lessened the raw power that flowed through his veins. As the knife carved his flesh and went past him, his arms came down and trapped the hand that carried it to his side. He heard the grunt of the surprise from the man behind him, and at the same time he spun around. Moving faster than most would think possible for a man his size, he reached out and grabbed his attacker by the throat. Again, another battle roar emenated from his lips as his strong fingers cut off the mans air and held his knife-arm trapped. Then, before anyone could react, he hoisted the man up in the air as if he were a doll. Eyes bulging in panic and terror, the man gurgled in the half-orcs grasp...and then went silent as Korm slammed him into the cobblestone with a sickening thud. Jack, who had begun to close the gap in an attempt to catch Korm off-guard, came to an immediate halt as his subordinate went limp on the ground. For his part, Korm turned to him with absolute fury blazing in his eyes. Leave, he growled. And if I ever catch your kind near them again, I'll make sure none of you get's the chance to walk away. Jack, despite being a very large and brawny man, did not align with the stereotype of a big, thuggish enforcer. He obviously had an intelligent head on his shoulders. Despite the cold hatred in the glare he gave Korm, he straightened his jacket and wiped the blood from his nose. I'll pass on your message to my employer, he said with a sickly smile, even though it never reached his eyes. Come on lads. And you, cover yourself up with...something. You're embarrassing me, he shouted at the man who was pulling himself half-naked out of the fountain. Whether they walked, limped, or were dragged unconscious, all the men left the small street alive but to some degree or other, damaged. Korm, for his part, watched them leave with a foreboding sense of dread in his heart. The presence of competent enforcers such as this was not a good omen for the city in general, and specifically the troupe. Turning to Agnar, he pressed his hand against the bleeding wound on his side. I'd be very, very careful over the next couple weeks. I wouldn't put it past them to seek some form of retaliation, if nothing else than to make an example of you.