11th of Glade, 4623
“Well… This didn’t turn out how I would like it to be….”
A youthful Draedan hailing from the city of Saren is faced with a difficult predicament. Having spent the majority of his days in the opulent sectors of Genteven, he began to yearn for the familiarity of his humble beginnings and thus ventured into the impoverished slums where he honed his magical abilities. However, during his travels through these unfamiliar and perilous environs, the strain of maintaining his concentration on his spells whilst remaining vigilant of his surroundings proved to be a strenuous task, even for a skilled adept such as himself.
As Jared gazed upon the breathtaking spectacle of glimmering lights hovering in the air, he suddenly became aware of three shadowy figures emerging from the darkness. Although Daravin boasted the largest population of arcane practitioners in the world, witnessing magic in action remained a rare occurrence, which Jared considered a blessing.
He understood that a skilled mage could transform a destitute individual's life, propelling them out of poverty and into a better existence. However, an unsettling feeling crept over him as he observed the three men, causing him to hastily retreat down a narrow street. He could hear the sound of heavy footsteps following him, but as a street urchin from Genteven, he was not as familiar with the area as he was with his place of origin, Alistian.
Jared, the seasoned escape artist, attempted to evade his relentless pursuers by resorting to his go-to techniques of taking cover behind obstacles and executing swift, unpredictable turns. In a bid to hinder his chasers, he scattered wooden ball bearings and caltrops on the ground to slow their advancement. Despite his efforts, the hunters were incredibly agile and swiftly caught up to him, trapping him in a cul-de-sac. While they exhibited aggression in their pursuit, they also seemed intrigued by Jared's evasion tactics.
“Seems like we caught ourselves a fine target; not too often you see a mage roaming these parts and one that is just like us; scums of the streets.”
“Why not work for us; we could always use a magus, especially someone of your skills. You seem to know how to handle yourself.”
“Besides, If you refuse, nothing can speak once you are dead.”
Jared's expression turned into a frown as he listened to the muggers' aggressive language. Being involved in the underground network was never an enjoyable experience for him, especially when dealing with enforcers. Jared was aware that people involved in the thievery world were divided into two groups, those who worked alone and those who worked with a team.
The Draedan, who worked alone, considered himself a jack of all trades. He had to plan everything himself, which often took longer than working with a team. Both styles had their advantages and disadvantages, but in this particular situation, Jared found himself outnumbered and had to focus on protecting himself from any potential harm that might come his way.
“What is it? Cat got your tongue….”
In a perilous situation, Jared found himself facing attackers who were intimately familiar with the area, making an escape an unlikely option. Faced with the prospect of harm, Jared realized that his best chance at survival would be to take a defensive stance and fight back.
Though he hoped to escape with minimal injury, he knew that he might need to use underhanded tactics if necessary. Drawing upon his Wildering skills, Jared employed a tactical approach to disrupt his attackers' senses, causing them to experience a wave of nausea that left them vulnerable to his defense. Given his current capabilities, this was the most effective means of protecting himself and ensuring his safety.
As the group confronts the Draedan, one of their members suddenly doubles over in agony, clutching their stomach while struggling to maintain their balance. Acting swiftly, the remaining two members move in to engage the Draedan, determined to prevent them from unleashing their formidable abilities. However, the thief realises that this will be no easy battle, as their Wildering ability requires constant eye contact to be effective. Meanwhile, Jared catches sight of the two charging assailants, brandishing their deadly blades, from the corners of his eyes..
Jared brandished his blackjack and entered into a chaotic melee. Even though he attempted to concentrate on impeding one adversary, he struggled to stke the other two simultaneously with his weapon simultaneously. This was a formidable task for someone who needed combat expertise. To exacerbate matters, the Draedan was besieged from all sides, which rendered it even more arduous for Jared to diminish their numbers.
As the Alistian thief in question fends off various strikes, some arcing high aimed at his shoulders while others being feint to strike a potential vital; Jared’s agile footwork from the constant practice of using his acrobatic movements has proved to be useful as he twists his body at a second’s notice to avoid being hit while using the momentum to hammer back the limbs with his trusty leather-woven blackjack. The thief needed to end the fight quickly if possible, and some daring plans were being made while the thief was trying to maintain contact.
With each strike that the Draedan placed on his opponents, a brief surge of divinity would coat his blackjack to increase the weight of the blow, enough so that their arms would fly back further than expected to create a window of opportunity. Quickly pulling out a wooden bead, the thief would charge the object with his divinity using Acclimate to change the properties for the item to become brittle upon contact; flicking the bead with such force, the wooden sphere would shatter and splinter into many shards, which flies straight and embedding themselves into the one of his assailant’s face which causes a bit of agonising grunting as the force pushed deep into their flesh.
While the pain is temporary, It was enough of a distraction that Jared could land a heavy blow with his iron rod blackjack. The force of the strike was enough to make an unusual cracking sound as the attack landed squarely on the chin; The thief didn’t realise how much strength and force placed in his strikes was quite drastic compared to pre-divinity as the man in question fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes.
As the intense battle ensued, Jared's focus shifted away from the third member of their group. It was apparent that this individual had been affected by Wildering's violent ability, leaving them vulnerable and in need of time to recover from the aftermath of vomiting something foul. Wildering's ability was a product of his soul and divine spark, designed to serve as a defence mechanism against opponents who were more skilled in combat. However, with enough practice and experience, Wildering's ability could become lethal in the hands of those with evil intentions. Jared was always mindful of this fact, knowing that it was crucial to keep a watchful eye on the development of Wildering's skills and potential.
What was more important now was fending off his current assailant; the slightly hindered member would need time to recover and based on the brief glances about his current status, they would not be in any condition to fight after barraging their senses with his divinity.
Nevertheless, the thief would take a moment to flick his cloak in an upward arc, filling it with his divinity as the surface of the shroud would harden similar to stone as a shiv would fly straight to his body, quickly creating an awful scraping sound as the make-shift blade’s edge becomes damaged. The thrill of battle was exciting yet scary in the thief’s opinion; rarely did he engage in combat, and most of the time, when he did, it was through the lens of defending himself.
Yet now, as his stone-imbued cloak was parrying the shiv, the thief would quickly swing his blackjack over to his opponent’s stomach with a heavy swing. The force would be enough the knock the person back a couple of feet as his body was flung back before hitting a crate; the sound was loud enough that the thief needed to escape as the scuffle would attempt.
Hearing all the groaning emitted by the trio, the thief couldn’t help but feel sorry for their situation, but Jared was defending himself, which was the only reason he had to fight so vigorously. Quickly looking around, the thief takes a moment to look at the wall that was cornering him, identifying pockets within the wall that he could use to scale up to the Thieves’ Highway.
With that notion; the thief would take a moment to quickly scale up the wall, leaving his pursuers in the dust but knowing how grudges can last; the thief was going to maintain his level of notoriety to an acceptable level. For now, the Draedan needs to manifest his abilities in the safest way possible but sometimes, leaving the comfort of safety is necessary to grow.
