Let me know what you think of it. I wrote it pretty quickly so try not to be entirely harsh.
The moon was hidden behind the clouds heavy with rain. Lightning streaked across the sky and thunder rumbled as he crouched in one of the many trees around him near the dirt road. Waiting for the King and his men to come by which should be any minute now. And sure enough here they came, but he heard them before he saw them. First the clopping of horses hooves and then the clanking of armor as men marched by. His heart pounded, his enemy was so close the stakes high. If he scored this kill not only would he become very rich, but he'd also become one of the most famous assassin's in all the world. Rain began to fall now, lightning streaked again revealing the kings carriage. And as the assassin had hoped the man driving had a dark cloak his hood pulled up to shield him from the rain. The assassin crept across the branch until he was crouching directly above the road. Turning his back on the carriage he wrapped his legs around the branch and let himself fall his knife ready. The carriage pulled closer yet and the man driving didn't notice the shadow just above him. The blade showed bright in the lightning as he plunged it deep into the carriage drivers throat. The assassin let his legs relax and he fell into the carriage seat. He flipped the drivers body off the side, it hit the ground with a slight thud but the guards walking just infront didn't hear it over the storm. He took up the reins replacing the driver.
He guided the carriage forward, but voices were yelling ahead. The call to halt came and the assassin smiled as he knew his trap had worked. He pulled on the reins and the carriage halted. The guards ahead of him came back and encircled the carriage. Their backs turned on the only real threat. Deciding to have fun with his all to easy part. The assassin jumped down and walked up to one of the guards. "What is the meaning of this halt? My Lord has to reach Sheredsborg by the day after next." The guard turned his head back ever so slightly not stopping his scan of the dark trees and brush before his eyes. "Relax, we found a wagon ahead and a little off the road. The driver has been slain and the horses cut loose." The assassin carriage driver made a disgusted noise. "Why do we have to stop for that? The man is dead there's no need for us to share his fate." Laughing the guard answered him, "This was most likely the work of bandits, we have a couple of scouts heading out into the woods trying to find them. Until then we sit here and wait." The assassin turned toward the carriage door. "We'll see what my Lord has to say about this interruption then we will see how necessary this stop is." The guard payed no attention to this remark and continued to scan the outlying woods. Leaving the assassin an excuse to speak with the king. He knocked on the carriage door. And the familiar voice of King Garrett responded. "Enter." The Assassin opened the door and climbed in. Garrett sat on the left looking out the window. He turned and saw his driver climbing in. "Ah, Harold come to get out of the rain have you?" Playing his part Harold nodded and without warning lunged at Garrett revealing his blade. The King let out a nearly silent cry as his throat was cut and his pockets searched for any valuables. The Assassin wiped his knife clean and put it back inside his cloak. He then reached into a pocket on the opposite side and pulled out a single red orb. With that in hand he opened the carriage door and began to climb out. Dropping the orb on the rug floor while shutting the door. "Fire, fire!" he yelled as the carriage burst into flames. All the guards turned sprinting for the now well roasting carriage. Orders were given, and the men began trying to put out the fire. Even with the help of the rain it would take awhile. The Assassin seeing his job complete slipped away into the stormy night, becoming invisible as he entered the woods.
[quote]Yea if you have any suggestions to tune it lemme know and ill release a edited version. kk good lol. itd suck if you forgot. but since we both need sleep ima log. Guess ill read your story tomorrow.[quote]
If I have any I'll let you know, and same here hope you enjoy the rest of this tale.
So here is the next part I'm trying to work out the rough spots, and I believe this is the worst part yet. I hope it doesn't upset anyone.
The assassin woke up lying on his back, vison fading in and out as he slowly gained full conciousness. His nostrils burned with the still fresh scent of the sleeping gas that had knocked him out. But now it was accompanied by mold and decay. This was definatly a prison cell deep under the castle he thought. How far under the fortress he didn't know. As he stood he heard the sound of armored feet and the familiar sound of someone searching through a number of keys. He could tell they were getting closer to his cell but couldn't see a thing, the cell was windowless and no torches were burning outside it. He stood motionless in the dark listening closely trying to figure where the approaching soldiers were headed. A light began to flicker into the room. And suddenly two men appeared one carrying a torch the other carrying what the assassin assumed were the prison keys. The two were speaking back and forth between each other quietly. Their words inaudible to him as they opened the cell door with a loud groan. The guard carrying the keys hooked them to a ring on his belt while the other placed the torch in a metal fastening near the doorway.
"Alright assassin, Hayden wants a word with you before your trial." The guard who'd had the torch spoke with a sneer and grabbed him by his left arm. The assassin didn't struggle at first. Then the guard carrying the keys grabbed his right arm. "I'd appreciate it if you two gentlemen would release me." The assassin had his head down, even as he spoke he didn't look up. The two men laughed at him,the one on his left clenched his fist and went to punch him. The assassin struggled now, with the guard holding him with only one arm he was able to break free, kicking at the man trying to punch him. The first blow hit the guard in the stomach hunching him over, the second hit him hard in the face. Sending him flying backwards. He hit the wall with a crash and didn't move. The other guard hadn't any time to react. The assassin had him pinned against the wall, hands clamped around his throat. The guard punched at the assassin's stomach very forcefully, but the assassin kept a firm grip. The punches became weaker, and farther between. And finaly they stopped completely, the mans eyes went blank and he collapsed to the dirty stone floor. But this one didn't hit the ground hard the assassin caught him and layed him down gently. He immediatly went for the guard belt searching for the key ring. He felt his way along the belt feeling for the hook. The torch light was dim and cast very little light for him. They must be on the ground he thoguht and so he ran his hands along the dirty floor. He had been looking for what he guessed to be about ten minutes when the guard he'd kicked in the face started moaning. If he didn't hurry the guard was going to wake and sound an alarm. He searched more franticly, the guard was on his hands and knees now. The assassins heart leapt with joy as he felt the cool ring of the keys. He grabbed them and stood up off the ground. As he ran for the door he kicked the guard again this blow was fatal, the sound of cracking bone filled the room. The assassin didn't hesitate, he grabbed the torch in the metal fastenings and stepped out of the cell into the pitch black hallway. The torch did little to help his vision. He looked left and right, the two paths looked exactly the same. But then he felt it, the cool breeze of fresh air coming down from the left. That had to be the way out he thought moving down the left hall. His pace quickened as the breeze became stronger and cooler. He walked for what seemed like ages when he came to another decision. There was a staircase straigh ahead, the heavy door was shut tight, and there was also a passage on his left. The assassin listened closely, terrible screams were coming from the passage on the left. That must lead to the interrogation chambers. So he chose to take the staircase. Having climbed the steps he found the door locked. He placed the torch in a metal fastening next to the door and began fumbling through the keys. He felt anger as he realized how many keys there actually were. From what he could tell there had to be at least 50 on the small ring. Pulling the first key he attempted to unlock the door. His attempt failed, after three more tries he gave up using every key and started looking at the keyhole. If he looked for matches between the keys and the hole it would go much quicker. His sense of time had long been lost and he hadn't a clue how long he'd been trying to unlock the door. A set of footsteps from the left passage below him quickened his pace. His heart was pounding now and his hands were starting to shake if he was caught now they'd kill him on the spot. They were moving closer and closer, and he still hadn't found the key. He looked down toward the passage and could see a faint light getting brighter. He grabbed his torch and threw it to the ground, the room went black. The only illumination coming from the passage. He felt his way to the left side of the steps and jumped off the landing. Hitting the ground softly he stretched his arms out and felt for the wall. The footsteps and the light were very close now, he was out of time. He lowered himself to the ground, hoping his body was dirty enough to camouflage him against the floor. His heart stopped beating with what he saw next. Prince Hayden stepped into the room followed by a body guard. Hayden looked back at his guard and spoke with his hissing tone.
"Those stupid fools can't be trusted with the simplest tasks. They'd better beg for forgiveness when I see them." The two turned and dissapeared down the hall the assassin had been in not to long ago. Now he knew he had to hurry. He leapt to his feet, finding his way blindly to the top of the steps. And he started again trying to unlock the door. There were only five keys left now. It had to be one of these he prayed. The first two were not it. Neither was the third as he tried turning the lock. He grabbed the fourth key thrusting it in the keyhole. He had just begun to turn the lock. Wanting to cheer with joy as the lock gave in,when the key broke off. Tears of rage streaked his face. It was over he thought, his escape ruined.
[/i]With such great response to the last part I've decided to continue. Please let me know what you think.
With all hope of escape lost the assassin descended the stairs and sat down on the last step. Arms folded across his chest he gave a sigh of defeat. Never before had this happened, he thought angrily. Just then he felt a cool breeze against his cheeks. He stood and moved in its direction, the source was coming from the torture chamber Hayden had come from. What other choice did he have. Not worrying whether he would be caught or not the assassin ran down the dark hallway, his arms were spread so that he could feel the walls. The breeze was picking up again, and the smell of mold and decay dissapeared. Replaced by the scent of fresh air. Suddenly the walls fell away from him he must have come to the next room but with no torch he couldn't tell where he was at. A bell began to ring, they had discovered the dead guards. He heard a door open from the direction he'd just come, someone must have unlocked the door. The sound of many footsteps pushed him to discover where the air was coming from. He strained his eyes for any sign of what was ahead, he could make out a darker shadow straight in front of him. Perhaps it was another door way. He moved closer, but still could not tell what it was. The air was rushing now, the source was this dark shadow against the wall. At that second he heard the footsteps very close. He looked back to see five armed men chasing after him. But it was to late. The assassin stepped out into the shadow he could feel fingers brush his back. But that was forgotten as the sensation of falling overwhelmed him, to terrified to scream he folded his arms across his chest praying he didn't hit solid ground. The air was screaming in his ears, his shoulders were brushing the sides of the tunnel. It seemed it was becoming smaller, but he wasn't certain. Perhaps his mind was playing tricks on him. He felt his feet hit something cold and then his whole body was engulfed. The frigid water stole his breathe, he went under feeling his feet hit the bottom it was rough and sharp. He pushed off the ground ignoring the pain that it caused him. Breaking the surface he struggled to tread water. The current was pulling him along but it was also pulling down. He winced with pain as his shoulder clipped a boulder in the water, and then his head smashed against something hard losing conciousness for the second time.
The assassin coughing up water began to awaken. He felt a warm hand brush back the hair clinging to his forehead. "It's alright young child, do not be afraid Hayden and his men didn't get you." The voice belonged to an old man. Slowly the assassin opened his eyes, all he saw were the big brown eyes of an old man and his bushy gray beard. "I'm glad you're awake assassin, I was beginning to think one of my potions was in order but now I can see there is no need." The old man smiled revealing his nearly straight teeth. The assassin sat up and looked around him. He was in a rather large one roomed cottage. The roof was thatched and he could see small rays of light slipping in through gaps in it. He was in the corner on a small bed, a fire place was on the far wall burning slowly. There was a large table in the center of the room freshly polished. The door to the cottage was bolted shut. And the curtains on the window were pulled tight. The old man sat on a small chair next to the bed. A bowl of water sat on the night stand. "Where am I?" The assassin asked. The old man smiled, "Well you are in my home in the small farming village of Comersant." For being an old man he was very energetic, and he seemed to bounce as he spoke. But behind the bright brown eyes the assassin could see something was bothering him. Comersant was indeed a small village it consisted of twelve homes and a small alchemy shop at the edge of town. The assassin discovered that the old man's name was Carlin Barrek. He had been a farmer for thirty seven years and was a dabbler in the art of potion making. His wife died many years ago back when Comersant had been a much larger town. She was killed during a battle between the forces of the Original King Garrett and a French Warlord who's name Carlin couldn't remember.
The assassin had been residing within Carlin's home for three days when he finaly asked Carlin what was bothering him. Carlin immediatly went on the defensive. "What are you talking about? I'm perfectly fine nothing wrong with me." The assassin didn't buy a word of it. "My new friend, I thank you for your kindness, if it weren't for you I'd most likely be dead by now." Carlin had found the assassin on the shore of a near by lake where he'd been looking for ingredients for his potions. "I know you've thanked me many times already, and even knowing your past I cannot ask you for help in any of my personal quarrels, it would be rude and not to mention put you in danger." Carlin wouldn't meet the assassin's eyes. "If you haven't noticed yet Carlin, I'm not one to shy away from danger what is it that bothers you?" He could tell Carlin was giving in to his prodding. After several moments of silence the old man spilled his guts. "My son was captured yesterday by Hayden's men. They often come through small villages like these and take people into custody on false accusations. One of the few thugs we have in town beat a guard to death while drunk. I don't know what the guard was doing to taunt him but now they've taken my son, said he matched the description of the killer. They took him to the capital for sentencing."[i] Carlin began to weep. The assassin knew why too, the penalties of the the kingdom were harsh. Assaulting a guard got a severe beating and ten years in prison. The killing of a guard was death, whether in self defense or not. [i]"Have you gotten any word of where the trial will be held?" Carlin wiped his tears away and shook his head no. "A very nice guardsmen promised me he'd send word of when the hanging would be. As he knew thats what would be my sons fate. The guard said he knew it wasn't my son who had done it." The assassin clasped Carlin's hand reasuringly. "Be at peace, once you recieve word I will go and save your son." It was the least he could do for this man. Even though he did admit that it wasn't a very even trade. None the less he would do it. Carlin let out a cry of joy, "I thank you assassin this means more to me than the world." The assassin smiled, hoping he wasn't getting into yet another mess.
Sorry about the spacing thing I'm a goof when it comes to that. And I haven't ruined anything, for all you know I could have just said that to keep you guessing.
