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Tranquil Waters: The Lead Crown Ch 7.1, Proclamations

Alarice quickly lost track of Bartholomeu once the battle began in earnest. While her first inclination was to use her pistol on the self-righteous Doberman she realized that he hadn't been the biggest threat and so her single shot holdouts had been put to better use on his armed escort... that, and he seemed particularly preoccupied with his shattered muzzle to cause any real problems. Drawing her sword, she gave the stunned Dog a swift kick to his sternum and met his closest goons head-on.

Rather than fight alone, Alarice was thankfully supported quickly by Brother Jessen who, faster than anyone else nearby had already drawn his sword. The Coyote had already disarmed one of Bartholmeu's thugs before he even had to get his shield in position to block another. Alarice stepped closer, bringing her sword across the back of the second man's hamstring, effectively laming him before connecting the tip of her boot to the underside of his chin.

Off to the side she watched as the gathering crowd quickly parted around Roland and Joshew, the latter of whom was rapidly combining a collection of ingredients into a flask held by the former. Alarice looked away a moment back to the two bruisers approaching her, only to lose track of what they were doing. She stood her ground, carefully defend herself against their exploratory attacks when she heard Roland shout from off to the side, "HEADS UP!"

Needing no further warning, the Human woman danced behind Brother Jessen, who held his shield up. A shockwave rolled past the Coyote's defense and Alarice felt her ears pop; she once again found herself fortunate that she was on good terms with those two-- she had a feeling they'd be even more destructive if she opposed them. Shaking the cobwebs from the concussive blast out of her head, she stepped around Brother Jessen and smirked when she saw her opposition on the ground, unconscious.

"JESSEN!"

The cry was not far away, and Alarice turned to see Alvis backpedaling, two unsavory looking gutter Curs approaching him aggressively, blades obviously ready to be put to use. She saw the Coyote move to the Mutt's aid and reserved her energy instead for a fresh batch of thugs moving into the square. A moment later she was joined by Weisen. The Dragon blocked her way by sticking his tail in front of her, "You'll want to stay behind me."

Alarice twirled her blade away in her grip, sliding it back into its sheath with a flourish as she focused instead on reloading her pistols, "If you're THAT confident, Sir Crook."

He nodded, unlatching a large case and letting the exterior slip off of the contents; it revealed what looked like six large muskets affixed to a metal frame. The Dragon smiled, gripping what looked like a rotating lever. "I am."

A half dozen of Bartholomeu's warriors rushed them and Weisen began to turn the crank; at first Alarice thought that the roar was the Dragon, but, as all of the attackers fell with blossoms of blood sprouting from various parts of their bodies she realized that the cacophony was, in actuality, the sound of dozens of gunshots one after another. She was... impressed.

Taking another step back, Alarice continued focusing on reloading her pistols, glancing away only once she heard Inigo cry out in pain. The Bat was still on the ground, but Sada was quickly dragging him a safe distance away from the combat. With all the head and rib injuries he'd sustained during service to her she resolved to get him a chest guard... and helmet... definitely a helmet.

A shout from off to the side caught Alarice's attention when she recognized it as Bartholomeu's heavy-tongued voice. "Hill her! Hill HER!"

While a good number of the Doberman's men were still engaged in combat with her allies, there were still many more coming into the square and, for the first time since she was reinforced by the scholars, Alarice began to worry about her chances for success. Sparing a quick glance toward Jessen and Alvis she saw that the Coyote was practically overwhelmed, and that was not comforting. When Wiesen's rapid firing gun stopped that cinched it. Glancing behind her, she saw a break in the crowd-- and she ran. "Sada! Get everyone to safety!"

Although she didn't know if her ploy would work, she was reassured when she heard the enraged Doberman shout, "AFTEH HER!!! HILL HER!!!"

Alarice sprinted through the crowd making her way toward the north side of town; she had four blocks until she reached the wall. They might have expected her to go for the gate, but she wasn't about to involve the city militia... not when she knew an alternate route. When she was young she would often use a sally port-- a small section of the town's wooden wall that pushed outward, allowing easy travel out without allowing entrance in. It only took a moment for her to locate the unused passage and she shouldered into it, forcing the door open as she ran through.

Slowing only long enough to look back to verify she was still being chased, Alarice made her way into the rocky forest, moving North and East, the ground rising steadily as she ran into the mountainous terrain. She estimated perhaps a dozen men coming after her-- a large portion of Bartholomeu's remaining flunkies if her preliminary count had been correct. If everything worked out right she would ultimately emerge the victor, but it would require expert timing, skill... and a little good fortune.

Although it had been years since Alarice had traveled into the cliffs above and behind Vallara, it felt like she had never left... granted, everything seemed smaller since she was no longer a little girl. The path was thinner and all of the undergrowth clung just a little more tightly; it wasn't convenient for her plan and she suddenly realized why she always managed to evade her father so easily: it wasn't easy for a fully grown person to navigate.

She was still some fifty yards to her destination when she got the first indication that the henchmen were gaining on her, "She's up ahead! GET MOVING!"

The second indication was a wild shot from what sounded like an old fashioned click-powder arquebus. Ducking low, she fell to her hands and knees, continuing to scramble the last few dozen yards up the incline she knew would be the destination-- there she would find out if she had made a smart move or if she'd bit off more than she could chew. The men behind her sounded even closer, but she prayed silently that her plan would still work.

Rising to her feet for the last sprint to the top, she pushed her way through a thick patch of brush and grabbed hold of a tree branch, using it as a pivot point to change the direction of her charge so as to avoid running straight off of the cliff. She grabbed it tightly, shouting over her shoulder, "If you think you can take me, COME AND GET IT!"

Her heart beat loudly in her chest as she heard the approach of her pursuers. Ba-bum. They were shouting to one another now, with at least one explicative directed at her. Ba-bum. She thought about the last time that she had made the trip to the overlook. Ba-bum. She became an orphan that day, and learned the dangers of blindly racing into the unknown. Ba-bum. Strange, she realized, that she spent so much of her life doing just that anyway. Ba-bum. The first of Bartholomeu's thugs emerged from the brush.

She screamed at the top of her lungs, "TAKE THAT!"

The man screamed as he passed over the point of no return and ran out into thin air-- his resulting scream, preceded by her exclamation was convincing enough that none of his cronies had second thoughts of racing blindly ahead and, one after another, a full eight men inadvertently made her job easier. Unfortunately, as she settled back to the ground, she realized that not all of them had... and three more thugs slowly pressed through the bushes, swords out. She had her back to the cliff and that meant the Badger, Hound, and Hyena had more than numbers to their advantage.

the thug furthest to the left, the Badger, leveled his short sword in her direction, "Nothin' personal, Love... but Bart said ta kill ya... I'm sure ya understand."

Alarice scowled, "Yea... I understand."

"Well then... how ya want it? Maybe a quick--"

She lowered her head, releasing her hold a green tree branch, sending it whipping out at eye-level, catching the Badger in the face. She grabbed hold of the ratty necktie he wore and gave it a yank over her shoulder, sticking her foot out so that he tripped, stumbling right over the edge. "Nothing personal... Love."

Then, like that, the other two were on her. The run had exhausted her and, she realized, her final two opponents had been the last in line because they hadn't exerted themselves quite as much. That, and the fact that there were two of them meant that she didn't have the stamina she'd need. Growling, she pushed the thought out of her head, continuing to block and parry where she could.

Still, the lack of maneuverability afforded to her as she fought them off was evident as they continued to score little nicks and small cuts here and there. By the time one pulled out a pistol she barely had enough left in her to dodge... and certainly not enough to mind her footing. Alarice barely managed to twist sideways to evade the gunshot but, as she did so, her right foot caught the edge of the precipice, which crumbled away. Flailing her arms, the woman saw everything pass by her in slow motion as she careened off the cliff.

The World cartwheeled around her as she spun through the air, falling toward the jagged rocks below. It was an eerie sense of deja vu as everything finally came full circle. As a girl she had fallen down the same cliff... but Ma'heed wasn't there to save her again. Alarice knew she would hit the ground and that impact would end her life... but the impact she felt came entirely too early... and from the side.

A second impact happened a moment later as she slammed into the ground at an angle. The pain was intense, and she was certain she felt something broke, but there was also something to break her fall; a Bat, with graying-brown fur, wrapped around her. The world spun around, making thinking difficult as they rolled to a stop. She stared as the middle-aged bat slowly disengaged. He seemed nearly as surprised to encounter her as she was to see him. "I knew you'd be back."

She didn't know what to say, struck dumb by the ghost from her past. In the end she kept it simple because it was all she could manage. "Ma'heed."

There was a lot more she wanted to say... questions to ask.... thoughts to convey... but all of that was interrupted by a sudden pain in her side. She heard the retort of a pistol from up and behind her a split second later... and a half-breath passed before blackness embraced her.