m: 'Slept So Long' belongs to Jay Gordon. Special thanks to 'The Punisher'
shadow0015: Mickey Mouse is an evil bastard with mafia connections. Maybe Navor is the middle child. Although, Nackor has so many relatives that I've kinda lost track. I'm the youngest in my family (Number two out of two) so I used to get manipulated and beat up by my sister. LOL. Wait…I still get manipulated. (She's smarter than I am…and she knows it…crap.) I thought 'Kill Bill' was a great movie. I'm starting to wonder if there's any way I can give Nat a 'pussywagon' :D
Chapter Sixteen
Nathyrra pulled her knife out of the dwarven assassin's throat. That was the seventh she had encountered that day. Nackor must know that I'm coming for him, Nathyrra thought, wearing a cruel smile.
As she continued forward, fatigue was starting to take its toll on her. Her eyelids started to droop but she snapped them open. No. I can't fall asleep. That will make me easy prey for some duerger.
The drow saw the lights of an inn ahead. She grinned in relief and made her way towards it.
XXXXX
"What can I get ya?" The svirf bartender asked.
"A room. Just for tonight."
The svirf took out a key. Nathyrra took out several gold pieces. They exchanged the objects and Nathyrra left to find her room.
XXXXX
Nathyrra walked through the shadowy planes of her dreams. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned around. The seven-foot barbarian looked down at her. The drow smiled and reached up to kiss him but he stopped her. His grey eyes were hard as diamonds as he spoke.
Walking
Waiting
Alone without a care
Hoping
And hating
Things that I can't bear
Did you think it's cool
To walk right up
To take my life
And fuck it up
Well did you?
Well did you?
I see hell in your eyes
Taken in by surprise(surprise)
Touching you makes me feel alive
Touching you makes me die inside
Walking, Waiting
Alone without a care
Hoping
And hating
Things that I can't bear
Did you think it's cool
To walk right up
To take my life
And fuck it up
Well did you?
I hate you!
I see hell in your eyes
Taken in by surprise
And touching you makes me feel alive
Touching you makes me die inside
I've slept so long without you
It's tearing me apart too
How'd it get this far
Playing games with this old heart
I've killed a million petty souls
But I couldn't kill you
I've slept so long without you
I see hell in your eyes
Taken in by surprise
Touching you makes me feel alive
Touching you makes me die inside
Nathyrra gave him a look of hurt confusion. Instead of the gentle care that he usually took, Seelamin roughly grabbed her arm. The barbarian plunged a dagger into her arm and began to coat it with the green substance the flowed in Nathyrra's veins. When finished, he stabbed himself in the chest. Nathyrra cried out in horror and sank to her knees. Seelamin's metallic grey eyes bore into her. The drow could see her reflection in his orbs. Her eyes glowed scarlet, and the tears that streamed down her face were the same green as her 'blood'.
XXXXX
Nathyrra sat up bolt right in her bed. Her breathing was rapid and shallow, and sweat poured down her face. Frowning, she took several deep breaths and wiped the sweat away from her forehead. Knowing that she would not fall back asleep and that it would not be wise to set off until hours later, Nathyrra got up.
After brushing her teeth, washing her face, and combing her hair, Nathyrra pulled on a pair of black pants and a sports bra. She dropped to the floor and began doing push ups.
Might makes right. Keep your muscles tight. Make your knives bite. Reach beyond your height. Keep your steps light. Become one with the night. See past your sight. Perform this to win the fight, Nathyrra mentally recited. Ilivarra had taught her this a number of years ago, telling her that if she could perform everything the rhyme dictated, she would make a decent assassin. Nathyrra continued to recite the rhyme in her head, striving to drive the memory of the dream out of her mind.
A quiet knock was heard at the door. The drow got up and opened the door. A female, just shy of six feet, part-drow stood in the door. Her amethyst eyes stared coldly at Nathyrra. Her hair was a lighter shade of purple, completely braided across her head. Black stripes covered her skin. She wore purple boots, belt, gloves, and vest. Blue pants and a sleeveless shirt.
The drow threw a right hook that knocked Nathyrra backwards. Nathyrra quickly recovered her balance and attempted to shut the door in the woman's face. The drow put her foot in the door before Nathyrra could finish and punched Nathyrra in the stomach.
The wizard grunted before casting an invisibility spell and moving into another corner of the room.
The part-drow walked into the room. She looked around. "Hmmm…if I were an assassin, where would I be standing?"
"Right behind you." Nathyrra hissed before delivering a solid punch to the woman's back.
The part-drow gave no indication of pain as Nathyrra hit her and kicked at Nathyrra's knees. Because Nathyrra moved, the blow meant to shatter her kneecap hit her in the thigh muscle instead. Nathyrra gritted her teeth and threw another punch at her enemy. The other drow dodged.
"So, do you have a name?" Nathyrra asked as she prepared another punch.
The purple-haired drow caught Nathyrra's fist in her hand. "Faeryl Besair." she replied before grabbing Nathyrra's arms and throwing her across the room.
The wizard rolled to prevent injuries and stood up. "Any relation to Korve Besair?"
"Don't you dare mention that son of a bitch!" Faeryl snarled.
Nathyrra broke off the post on the bed. "Let me guess. He's your father?"
Faeryl growled and ran towards Nathyrra. The drow swung the post at her torso. Faeryl grabbed it and snapped the object in half before tossing it into the corner of the room.
Though Faeryl was obviously stronger, Nathyrra was much faster. She avoided Faeryl's next blow by doing a back handspring. "So, what did Korve fuck to create you?" she asked casually.
Faeryl narrowed her eyes and stormed towards her. Nathyrra grabbed a knife off the desk and stabbed her in the shoulder. Faeryl grinned and pulled it out as though it were merely a splinter. Nathyrra stared at her in open horror.
Faeryl's grin widened and she grabbed Nathyrra by the neck. Nathyrra attempted to struggle and tried to pry Faeryl's hands off her throat. The part-drow sighed and slammed Nathyrra against the wall, dangling her in the air. Nathyrra blinked with daze, trying to regain her senses.
Nathyrra soon regained her senses as Faeryl buried the dagger deep in her shoulder. She cried out in pain. Faeryl smirked and toyed with the blade. "I'm going to cut off your pretty little face." the part-drow promised as she raised the knife.
Thinking quickly, Nathyrra grabbed Faeryl's braids and yanked them towards her. Faeryl let out a howl and dropped Nathyrra. The wizard dove through Faeryl's legs, slid across the floor, turned around, kicked Faeryl in the back of her knees, and swept her feet from beneath her. Nathyrra rolled to get out of the way of the falling part-drow before standing up and delivering a hard kick to her ribs.
Faeryl grunted. "You're gonna wish your mother drowned you at birth!"
"What makes you thinks she didn't try?" Nathyrra calmly replied as she executed another kick. Faeryl grabbed Nathyrra's leg and twisted it, spraining the ankle and making the drow fall. "I've heard of you. They say that you're practically invincible and as quick as a lightening bolt." She kicked Nathyrra in the jaw. "Frankly, I'm not impressed."
Nathyrra spit blood onto her boots. Faeryl reached towards her. The drow shouted a fireball spell at her. It had no effect on the part-drow. She laughed at Nathyrra's astonished face. "Magic immunity, fool!"
Faeryl grabbed the drow and threw her across the room. Nathyrra winced as she crashed into a painting, falling to the ground and creating new bruises on her back. She shakily stood up.
Faeryl laughed. "You're tough. I'll give you that." she strode towards Nathyrra.
Nathyrra did a cartwheel to avoid her. "Let me guess, you're here because of Nackor."
"He turned to mercenaries after learning that his own brother failed." Faeryl said as she threw another punch at Nathyrra. The drow ducked, and the part-drow's fist broke through the wall. She tried to pull it out but was unsuccessful.
Nathyrra smirked. "Mercenary, eh? Following in Daddy's footsteps?"
Faeryl snarled and pulled her fist out of the wall. "I will have nothing to do with that asshole!"
"You took his last name. You must feel some connection towards him." Nathyrra taunted.
Faeryl continued to assault Nathyrra with blows, but the drow avoided all of them. "So what's the price on the my head, exactly? I'm curious." Nathyrra stated.
"Three hundred thousand gold. I'm not just doing this for the money. You see, I never got the chance to kill Korve-"
"I see he's a popular male." was Nathyrra's sarcastic interjection as she dodged another hit.
"But that trainer of yours did. She stole it from me. It was MINE! NOT HERS!" Nathyrra could tell by the raw anger and grief in her voice that Faeryl was still in deep pain by whatever her father had done to her. She couldn't have been very old. By drow terms, she was only fourteen or fifteen years of age. Unexperienced, but more than able to compensate with raw power. This woman was like a spoiled child that had been denied a favroite toy. Spiteful, angry, and violent. Or perhaps, she only behaved in this manner when forced to confront a sector of her past. Whatever the reason, Nathyrra would try to find a way to use Faeryl's rage against her.
Faeryl narrowed her eyes. "Now that I can't kill Korve, and I can't kill her, I'm going to settle for the next best thing; you. That will satisfy my revenge. That will hurt your whore of a trainer, won't it?"
Nathyrra laughed. "You don't know the first thing about revenge. And by killing me, you're probably only avenging your father."
"You bitch! I'll kill you for those words!" Faeryl screamed. Nathyrra failed to deflect Faeryl's next blow. The impact sent her sprawling towards the window. The glass shattered and Nathyrra fell backwards, hanging half-way out the window. The drow snarled and pulled a piece of glass out of her cheek.
Faeryl grabbed Nathyrra's waist and threw her upwards. She laughed as the drow hit the ceiling, creating new wounds. She hit the floor in a bloody mess. Nathyrra spit more blood onto the ground and tried to stand up.
Faeryl shook her head. "I'm surprised you're not dead yet." She grabbed Nathyrra's by the hair and threw her at the bookshelf. Nathyrra crashed into the object, making it collapse. She rolled out of the way of the falling bookshelf. Nathyrra let out a bitter laugh. "That's what they all say. Or think, anyway."
The mercenary grabbed the drow and threw her against the wall once more. This time, Nathyrra crashed into the wall, creating a drow-sized hole and falling through into the room adjacent to hers.
"What the hell?" asked a male svirf as the drow crashed into a chair. Faeryl's fist broke through the wall, creating an even larger hole and allowing her to walk into the room. The three svirfs watched in shock as Faeryl grabbed Nathyrra's neck and slammed her onto the countertop.
Nathyrra used one hand to keep Faeryl from breaking her neck and the other to take a steaming pot and pour the contents onto her attacker. Faeryl growled as the liquid poured into her eyes, blinding her for the moment.
Nathyrra let out a cry of rage and ran towards Faeryl, using the pot as a battering ram. Faeryl crashed through the other wall and flew into the hallway. In her anger, Nathyrra let go of the pot and charged towards Faeryl. The impact made them both crash into the stair railing. They fell off the floor, hitting the stairs as they fell.
Before Faeryl could stand up, Nathyrra grabbed a broken piece of the railing. The wood had been sharpened by the break. Nathyrra ran it through Faeryl's skull. The mercenary would have collapsed, had the wood not been stuck in the wall by the force of the attack.
The one female and two male svirfs cautiously left their room and peered down the stairs at the mercenary and wizard. One of the males saw the sight of Faeryl and turned around to vomit.
"Are you alright?" The female called, trying to conceal her disgust.
Nathyrra wiped the blood away from her face and looked at them. "I'll be alright." She looked at Faeryl. "She won't."
"One…Two…Three." The other male recited.
Nathyrra fell backwards, unconscious.
XXXXX
Nathyrra blinked as she awoke. She started to sit up but a cool hand on her shoulder stopped her.
"Don't try to move just yet. You may not be completely healed." The female svirf warned.
Nathyrra ignored her and sat up, holding the sheet to her chest. "How long have I been out?"
"About two days." she replied.
The assassin looked down at herself. Her wounds were completely healed, except for several scars and bruises. When she realized that she was wearing nothing but her underwear and a large amount of bandages on her chest she turned towards the woman, one eyebrow arched. "What happened to my clothes?"
"If you remember, those clothes of yours were little more than rags after that woman was finished with you. There was substantial damage done to your legs and chest, so I had no choice but to remove those garments." She shook her head. "I recommend that next time you pick a different outfit than a sports bra and a pair of athletic pants when you get into a fight with someone who's a good foot taller than you."
Nathyrra scowled. "I didn't exactly have much of a choice."
"Well, if you get a choice next time, you should pick something different."
"So are you a cleric?" Nathyrra asked, changing the subject.
"No, but I used to be the healer for my village."
One of the male svirfs stuck his head into the room .Nathyrra recognized him as the one who had vomited at the sight of Faeryl. "Hey, is she-" he stopped when he saw Nathyrra. "Feeling better?"
"Worlds better." Nathyrra replied.
The other svirf walked into the room. "Hey! She's awake!"
The female smiled. "I me to introduce myself. My name is Diane." She pointed at the one who had vomited. "That's Cliff." Diane pointed at the last svirf. "That's Norm."
Nathyrra nodded. "Pleased to meet you all."
"What's your name?" Norm asked.
"Vasenna" Though they had treated her with kindness, Nathyrra had decided that one could never be too careful.
"Savenna?" Cliff asked, puzzled.
"Why don't you just call me Vas?" Nathyrra offered.
"Sure thing, Vas."
Nathyrra shook her head. "I must go."
"Are you certain? You're welcome to-" Diane began but Nathyrra cut her off. "I thank you for your generosity, but I have a pressing matter to attend to, and I must leave immediately." The drow stood up. "I suppose you don't have my clothes, do you?"
"I threw those rags away." Diane responded.
"Very well. I'll return to my room." She noted that Norm and Cliff's eyes followed her as she left. Like they've never seen female arms, legs, and ribs before. All men are the same.
XXXXX
Nathyrra stood in front of what remained of the svirfs' room door. She had paid the innkeeper for the damage and was saying her goodbyes to the svirfs.
"Now you've done it. My cousins won't stop talking about 'the pretty drow that they 'rescued' for weeks'." Diane said, winking at Nathyrra.
"Diane!" the embarrassed men cried simultaneously.
Nathyrra chuckled. "Thank you once again. I must take my leave now, but I shall remember your kindness." As she walked out of the inn, Nathyrra pondered the idea of kindness. They showed me kindness. Perhaps I could…No. There is no room for kindness or mercy in my line of work. I must remain strong. My principles must not be poisoned by these ideas. I will think of revenge, I am close to it now. She continued down the road.