Revenge

[Carter]

Carter slit the final Guard's throat with such ease, he might as well have been having a cup of tea at the same time. The Guard slumped to the ground and Carter casually stepped over his body, so he was standing back onto the corridor. He kicked the dead soldier, rolling him over so that he was in more of a pile with his colleages, before turning to Allan solemnly. The appearance of the guards had lost them serious time, and Carter gave Allan a quick nod, to signal he was ready, and without further ado jogged forewards towards the Guest rooms.

[Allan A'Dale]

Allan wiped his brow, sheathed his swords and followed closely on Carter's heels. As they reached the first door he cautiously put an ear to it. No sound. He pushed the door open slowly and poked his head in. Nothing. Not even occupied at the moment, by the looks of it.

He withdrew and shook his head silently at Carter, although after a couple of seconds he realised there was little point in trying to remain silent now, after the clash and commotion of their fight with the guards.

"This'll be quicker if we each take a side of the corridor. Let's keep in sight of each other though, we need to be close together in case we find who we're looking for-" he paused; "-or who we're not looking for."

[Carter]

Carter gave Allan a nod. "Good idea. Guy must have showed you a few tricks," he started with a grin. But he hesitated and then turned away from him, still grinning. Now was not the time to be patronising. He started on the first door on the other side to Allan. He pressed his ear to it, and then slowly pushed it open. Nope. No-one inside.

He turned around to face Allan. "Seriously, how many guest rooms are there in this castle?" he said with an eyebrow raised. He glanced quickly down the long corridor. If every door down the corridor is a Guest room, then this would take some time. He sighed and moved onto the next door.

[Isabella]

Isabella looked sincerely at Djaq, relieved beyond belief that she was calm now. She took a deep breath and started to talk to Djaq truthfully about what she had done.
“I knew that you would be upset, confused, sad…and a lot of other emotions, too, when I told you about Basaam,” she began, “Angry, too – especially angry. Listen, I want you to know… it’s fine for you to feel those things. You can feel anything, and that will be the truth. But when you left the inn, I was scared for you – honestly, I was scared. I did not want anything to happen to you – if you were angry, then you could get into a dangerous situation. I believe you can take care of yourself, I know you can. But imagine, Djaq, if you went to take revenge and something happened to you, because of something I’d done. Tell me truthfully how I could face the people who love you – your husband, your beautiful child, your friends and comrades – how could I face them ever again, with that guilt? And how could I ever forgive myself? Tell me how - tell me, please.”

[Djaq]

Djaq gazed at Isabella, silently listening to her words. How could she have been so stupid to go off and try to kill the Sheriff on her own? She shook her head, disappointed by herself. "You're right." she said sadly to Isabella. "There's no way I could kill the Sheriff on my own. And if I tried, I would almost definately be killed." she smiled up at Isabella. "Thank you. Thank you so much Isabella." she said, her eyes wet with her previous tears. She whiped them hastily, not wanting to show any further weakness.

"Alright." she said with a smile. "Thanks for offering to help Isabella." she said relieved. "With you're help, and if we work together, we're bound to kill the Sheriff!" she grinned with renewed confidence. She grabbed Isabella's wrist and made for the door handle. "Got you're sword? Good. Let's go."

[Isabella]

Isabella’s short period of relief ended abruptly as soon as Djaq said: With your help, and if we work together, we’re bound to kill the Sheriff!
Why is nothing ever simple? she groaned internally for the second time that day, resisting the temptation to roll her eyes.
The phrase ‘getting the wrong hold of the stick’ had never been so appropriate in the history of man. It could have been invented just to be used for this very situation, (though it probably hadn’t.) Isabella took hold of both of Djaq’s wrists, so that she was directly opposite her, looking confusedly back at her.
“Djaq, I cannot let you do this,” she said, “It is too dangerous alone – even with two people, it cannot be done. Djaq, I want to protect you. Helping you to kill the Sheriff would be the very opposite – it would put your life in danger. I told you I couldn’t forgive myself if something happened to you, so please don’t make me carry that guilt. Djaq, I will help you to leave the castle safely and get back to your family. You have a duty to them as well as to Basaam, remember. Please, Djaq, listen to me.”

[Roe]

Roe had taken the side-entrance from the steps to escape before anyone really recognized his appearance there. Even if one of the surviving guards reported hat they thought they had seen hi, it could just be relegated to the stress of conflict. It would have been helpful, Roe thought to himself, if the outlaws had sent him word of whatever planned excursion they had in the castle. That was the reason for having a spy, wasn't it? Somebody on the inside that could give them assistance. Thinking carefully he knew that the outlaws had to have been moving up the steps when they encountered the guards.

Roe could hear the last throes of the battle between the outlaws and the guards winding down, which he had no doubt was in the outlaws favor. What was at the top of the steps he questioned himself. The only things that were up here were the guest rooms, and he knew that only one had been occupied recently, and he moved towards its direction. Roe heard some muffled voices that sounded like females, and then he could see the door handle begin to rotate. As far as he knew there had been a single male occupant of the guest room and no one else. Drawing both of his longswords he cried out, "Who goes there! Identify yourselves!"

[Djaq]

Again, Isabella's words had an effect on Djaq. She yanked her hands away, and opened her mouth to object, but then a loud angry male voice could be heard. Djaq stood deadly still, and looked at Isabella in confusion. Maybe they had been to loud. And of course, they were bound to run into some guards sooner or later. She unsheathed her sword as silently as she could, and nodded at Isabella. If Isabella wasn't going to help her, so be it. This guard would probably try and kill her, so she might as well give him the best fight she could give. Besides, she had gotten the better of guards countless times before.

She threw upon the door forcefully, and snarled at the guard in front of her, sword at the ready.

[Isabella]

Isabella could tell from the burning light in Djaq's eyes that she was not going to agree with her and come back home.
Alright then, she thought, We will have to do this the hard way.
But suddenly, someone shouted through the door at them, and before she could do anything to object, Djaq had unsheathed her sword and opened the door, prepared for an attack. It was all Isabella could do to pull out her dagger from where she had concealed it in her dress, and hold it out defensively. She did not recognise the man's voice, and suspected it to be one of the guards her companions had been fighting.
Does this mean that they've lost the fight? she wondered, feeling a pang of loss at the thought.
The two outlaws had helped her, a complete stranger, and now Djaq was about to walk away from them and their plan. Isabella could not let that happen, and prepared herself for drastic action, if necessary. She was not sure how far she would go to stop Djaq from killing the Sheriff, but the crazy idea she had just thought of could be her only option. She gritted her teeth and stared at the man outside the door.

[Will Scarlett]

Turning a corner in the complex network of corridors, Will continued hastily, albeit cautiously, through the castle in the direction of the voices he could hear. When Djaq had left the inn, Will decided to leave her alone for a moment and let her come back in her own time as she never liked being followed, but after waiting little more than a minute or two, he changed his mind and began to work his way along the streets of Nottingham asking peasants if they had seen her, and if so, which direction she'd gone in, and eventually, he ended up at the castle. Why she had come to the castle, he did not, but he managed to find his way in without too much trouble as some of the guards had already been disposed of, he assumed, by Djaq. And now, as the voices got ever closer he recognized them as female and broke into a run. Turning another corner, Will skidded to a halt as he saw, standing with his back to him, a guard armed with two long swords in a doorway and over the guards shoulder, on the otherside of the doorway, Will could see Djaq looking ferocious, sword at the ready. "Djaq?!" Will exclaimed.


((very sorry about the complete crappness of that I have no excuse other than laziness ))

[Djaq]

Djaq pointed the sword accusingly at the guard. She was breathing heavily, and it was visible by the sorrow in her eyes that she had lost all will to do this. This were just getting too complicated. She wished she had never been so foolish. But she coudln't turn back now. She had started something, so she was going to try her best to finish it.

But then she heard a familiar voice shout her name. She whipped her head around, and saw her husband standing before her. At first she thought it was a hallucination, but it was him. She bit her lip and loosened the grip on her sword, completely prone to attack. "Will!" she called back, and moved a step towards him.

[Roe]

Momentarily, Roe wondered exactly what he had stumbled across. There were at least two women in the room, and who knows how many more. one of the them, apparently the more surly of the two was obviously Saracen. He had heard that the man that had occupied this room had been from the same part of the world as well. He took a defensive position with his longswords crossed, prepared for whatever these two women might have in store for them. Personally, he had no desire to take any more lives than he already had. "Again, and for the last time, who are you and what is your business here?" He had a feeling that they might be the object of Carter and Allan's fight with the guards below. And the one woman seem to at least partially match the description of the woman named Djaq that they had told him about. Still, he could not make too many assumptions.

Suddenly three guards appeared to Roe's left. "Sir Rober' .... do you need some assistance? .... I think that's the first time I've heard you speak so clearly in English!"" Quickly Roe re-sheathed his left-hand sword, and turned .... "Yes .... well .... thank you lads ....its much appreciated,"" while reached into his belt, pulling out a knife and inserted knife under the surprised guards ribs, felling him almost immediately. Almost at the same moment he slashed the second guard across the throat with the sword in his right-hand, killing him. He then took the knife and expertly threw it into the middle of the final guards chest, finishing him off with a right-hand thrust with his longsword. "And I expect that's he last English you will ever hear me speak, as well. Now .... ladies ..... please tell me that the names Carter and Allan are familiar to you, and that you know a good reason why they've taken on a cadre of castle guards, just below us, eh?"" Suddenly he heard the name that he was hoping he would here, but this from the opposite side the guards had come .... "Djaq!"

OOC .... sorry had to speak for some generic guards .... hope I'm forgiven ... sorry about that Will as well .... hope its ok

[Will Scarlett]

As the guard span around to face him, Will recognized him immediately as Roe - the man that he had lead to the camp with Carter just the other day. "Roe?!" Will exclaimed in surprise what on earth was happening here? Why was Roe dressed as a guard in the castle and why was Djaq in the castle, looking as if she was about to kill Roe?! Now with the knowledge that this "guard" posed no threat to either Djaq or himself, Will moved past Roe, towards Djaq. "What are you doing in here?" he asked with a worried and perplexed expression upon his face. "Are you okay.... And where's Shafiq?!" he quickly continued quickly, concerned for the safety of his family.

[Djaq]

Djaq's eyes lost their ferocity as the guard mentioned the names Allan and Carter. She lowered her sword slightly. This man knew Carter and Allan. Her suspicions came back quickly enough, and she re-raised her sword. "What have you done with them?" she asked angrily and accusingly. She could hear Will's footsteps coming towards her, and she was at a loss at what to do. She started to panic. "I don't know why they are hear...they shouldn't be..." she asked shakily.

Then Will called the guard by his name. Roe. Djaq frowned. How did Will know who he was? But Will seemed to trust him. And if Will trusted him, Djaq trusted him. She lowered her sword, and moved to face Will. "Shafiq's safe." she said shaking her head. Situations had finally dawned on her, and the bubbling anger she had previously felt fizzled away. Will cared about his family, and it was about time Djaq did too. She was so dissappointed in herself. But she tried not to let it show. She sheathed her sword and let out a deep sigh. What to do next she had no idea. She felt so feeble and insecure. She moved closer still to Will. The only thing she wanted to do was fall into his arms, but it was not the time or the place.

[Will Scarlett]

Noticing Djaq's sudden change in emotion, Will took another step towards her and put a comforting and loving hand on her arm. "Hey...." he said soothingly. The fact that Djaq hadn't answered him when he asked why she was here, and the way she had lowered her sword and walked towards him, lead Will to believe that whatever the reason for her being here, she had changed her mind and was wishing that she wasn't here. "You wanna get back?" he asked softly.