A/N: I know this is a short chapter, and reflects muchly on the movie Rob Roy, but I thought it was a good way to end this story.
Chapter Three: The Blade's Last Rattle
After a week, Acel and Avery made their way down to the church to where their marraige was confirmed and legalised. It was quite an affair in town as many people wished to welcome Avery back and ask of her adventures in the years she had been absent. But during this time, Taylor, who had full knowledge of all that was going on, took this time to strike.
While Avery and Acel were at the Inn drinking and Merry-making, Taylor and his men slipped from their hiding place and headed out to the Roseman Manor and burned it to the ground. When Avery and Acel returned, they discovered their home destroyed, and very few things could be recovered. Avery flew into a passion, taking up what she could find form the ruins was her ring and the foil of her father, sharp and pointed.
"What shall we do?" Acel asked.
"I will find Taylor and kill him," Avery said. She turned back to the carriage they had arrived and cut one of the horses free.
"Where will I find you?" Acel asked.
"I will return to the Inn tonight," Avery answered flatly before riding off.
As Acel was returning to the Inn, Taylor put his plan into action. He and his men jumped Acel and carried him off to a private fencing provillian and sent one of his men to leave a message for Avery at the Inn.
"Now that we understand each other Acel, we won't have any arguments," Taylor said dryly.
"She will kill you," Acel shot back, which earned him a hard slap to the face.
"Don't forget your manners Acel," Taylor told him like you would a petulant child. "You are in no position to threaten me."
All day, Avery searched all of Taylor's lands and properties, but found no trace of him. Returning to the Inn, she asked for Acel, but the Inn-keeper told her that he was not here, but a message was waiting for her. Opening the letter, she read it's short note. Crumpling it up and throwing it into the fire, Avery stormed out to her horse and rode directly to the fencing provillian. Sure enough, upon her arrival, she was surrounded by Taylor's men and led inside.
"Ah, at last Avery, I was beginning to think you had missed your note and not your husband," Taylor welcomed coyly.
"Don't threaten me Taylor, this has nothing to do with him," Avery scowled.
"If you insist," Taylor replied. With a fast whip and slash of his fencing foil, the throat of Acel was cut and he died on the spot. Avery gasped in shock.
"Now that we have both taken from each other what we can't get back, it is time to bring this story of your revenge to a conclussion. It will be with your death at the hands of either my men or me," Taylor offered. Willing to prove herself move for move, Avery's foil flashed and whipped brilliantly as she cut down the men surrounding her.
"You and me," she said, rage and tears mixing together. From her dress she took a knife and ripped the side so that it was more loose around her, then ripped it so it was shorter in length.
"En Garde Avery, to the death," Taylor called, pointing his foil.
"Toche Taylor, let it be yours," Avery answered. Like their first encounter, she jumped forward and sliced out, but Taylor had predicted this, stepped aside and sliced her on the hip. It wasn't much, but the sting was still in place. Retaking her position, she waited for Taylor to attack first, which he did, but he used a much more speedy and nibble attack, which she found difficult to defend against. Finally, Taylor passed her defense and cut her stomach. This cut was a lot more painful, and this was distracting for Avery. She took up her stance one more time, she started with a slower attack that was difficult to predict, and she managed to hold Taylor at bay but not able to hit him, and finally the slow blood loss and pain got to her, and Taylor got in two more quick slashes. Avery was on her knees in too much pain to continue. Taylor, a smile of victory on his lips, held her chin up with his foil as he got ready to slit her throat.
"To the end," he said.
"So it will be," Avery answered. In one daring move, her hand grabbed the sharp foil and pulled Taylor forward, her foil flying up and hitting him in the chest. He had enough time to look down and see what she had done before the blade came out and sliced his throat open. Taylor fell to the floor, dead and unmoving.
Avery, without a single tear, stood up and went over to where her dead husband now lay. She kissed him on the forehead as a means of goodbye. She then walked out of the pervillion and was never heard of again.
Some say Avery went into the forest and killed herself, unable to live a life without meaning or her love. Others say she changed her name and continued to fence in other parts of Europe, always changing her name, but still with the name of Clandestin or something close to it. One other rumour persisted that she lived in the mountains, always training with her foil and teaching or killing those who came near her, depending on their skill, but one thing was for certain; while one person left that building that night and rode away into the night, Avery Austi died with her husband.