The Anari

by Adrianna J Tetnowski

  “We can-"

  The woman moved before he could say anymore. Killing him would cause too much trouble, no matter how badly she wanted to see a knife buried into his throat. Instead, the woman grabbed an empty wine bottle from a table nearby and did not hesitate to send it crashing down against his head.

  “And what about you?” the silver-haired woman asked the remaining offender who still stood beside her companion; his hand wrapped around the girl’s arm.

  To everyone’s surprise, the young girl in the waistcoat sent a clenched fist of her own into his groin. She let out a yelp as her knuckles clicked upon impact but, she was pleased to find her hit had been hard enough to send the man dropping to his knees.

  “Hey.” a gruff voice called out from behind an oak bar at the back of the room. Both women turned in time to find the owner of the inn, a tall and boisterous looking fellow, approaching them. He wore a stern expression on his face but, the silver-haired woman could not help but think he looked rather ridiculous with his little apron and a towel slung over his shoulder. "I won’t be having no fights in this inn, it’s a well-respected place.” he snapped.

  The silver-haired woman approached the man herself and dug a hand into a small pocket on her thigh. She slapped a coin flat against his chest and pushed him back.

  “Well, your clients certainly aren’t. Don’t test me, I was only protecting my companion.” she replied, her voice that same cool sound, not wavering even as she spoke to the owner of the inn.

  The man scratched at his stubble a moment and then ripped the coin out of her grasp. He jerked his chin towards the men in dismissal and they left without a word.

  “Good man.” the young woman cooed and then, unexpectedly, found a seat by Troian and Artus’ table again. Her young companion followed her in silence, not wanting to be left behind.

  “I was right all along.” Troian chuckled.

  “Right about what?” the woman asked.

  “You are mean.” Troian’s response did not seem to affect the woman the slightest. He wasn’t too sure if it was because she had heard far worse, or she just didn’t care.

  The other girl, brown-haired and pale, rubbed her hands together beneath the table and fixed up her waistcoat, which was in no need of fixing. She earned a heavy sigh from her silver-haired companion.

  “Why did you come along? Why leave home and seek freedom if you’re too damn scared to do anything. I could have done a lot worse to those men, believe me.” the woman muttered.

  “I’m still getting used to it all. It’s far different from,” the girl stopped and let out another yelp as her companion sent a sharp kick against her leg. She was certain it would leave a bruise.

  Troian and Artus both shared a suspicious glance before looking back at their new female companions. “What are your names?” Troian asked. He tried his best to sound casual however, his suspicions were becoming harder to conceal. The silver-haired woman was clad in black leather, her fingers scarred lightly and, by the way she took down those men with such ease and no fear…

  She must be a sell sword. Maybe even worse, an assassin? He thought and did not doubt Artus guessed the same. But then female sell swords and assassins alike were very, very uncommon. That was likely her selling point. No one else would place her with such a profession.

  “Our names are none of your concern. If you have no problem with us, then we’ll be on our way.” the woman with silver-hair said. Her voice was slow and threatening. Once having decided the men had understood her message well enough, she rose from her seat and tugged the other girl to her feet by her sleeve. “Let’s go.”

  Troian and Artus waited until the women had left the inn. With a single glance between each other, they gathered their things, rose from their chairs and followed after the women.

  27 –

  Preeya

  The silver-haired assassin had not stopped smiling since she had left The Swallow Inn. Her hand was braced against her hip as Atha carried her away from the building but, Ariadna still could not stop grinning.

  “Ari.” Preeya began, giving her a gentle tug on the arm.

  Atha snorted loudly as she trudged down the road. The beast swayed her head from side to side as she moved. The assassin did not answer for a moment. She pressed a finger against her lips, shaking her head as she laughed to herself again.

  “What? What is it?” Preeya asked. She smiled herself but, the priestess was not too sure what it was she was smiling about. Preeya gave Ariadna another gentle tug on the arm. “What’s so funny?” she tried again.

  It was at that moment Ariadna spurred her horse on, her silver hair streaming behind her as Atha picked up her pace. She felt the priestess’ arms wrap tighter around her waist and Ari cursed her silently for the amount of pressure she was applying.

  “Easy there, I can’t breathe.” Ariadna laughed; as in an actual laugh. To her own surprise, Ari thought it felt good to find something funny amongst the situation she had found herself in – babysitting a hopeless priestess and being followed by two men who clearly had no idea Ariadna was aware of their presence. She waited a moment longer, testing their patience. She could hear the sound of two other horses, their hooves crunching against the grey gravel of the road they were travelling on. The road was empty, save for the three travellers, as it was a back road that Ariadna had decided would be the safest option to take. If anyone dared to rob her and Preeya along the way, well then the thief would be in for a truly nasty surprise.

  “Ari,” Preeya began. The priestess went flying forward in the saddle, as Ariadna swung off her horse without warning at the sound of a rider charging towards them. Preeya grabbed hold of Atha’s reigns and tried to steady the horse, whilst her mistress joined one of the riders on his own steed.

  The man had no time to react as Ariadna tackled him off his horse; knocking the breath out of him. He grunted as he hit the floor and bit back a cry of pain, he hoped no bones had been broken from the fall. A part of him would be sprained for certain, at least, especially with the weight of another body on top of his.

  Preeya looked over her shoulder to find the other rider advancing on her. In one panicked frenzy, she leapt off Atha’s back and towards where Ariadna lay on the floor; wrestling with her own man.

  “OK, OK! I yield.” the man cried, choking on a laugh as he did.

  Ariadna pulled away in confusion, a blade already pressed against the rider’s throat as it bobbed up and down with each laugh.

  “What the fuck do you think you’re doing? Why are you following us?” she asked. Making the annoyance in her tone too obvious would have only given the man pleasure, to know he had managed to get to her somehow already. Not that following both women had not been a big issue in the first place.

  Ariadna was usually the one doing the stalking. She did not like being the prey for once, even if her predators were doing a pathetic job in their role. Yet Ari wondered why the second man had not jumped to his companion’s aid nor decided to lay a hand on Preeya.

  The man lifted his head off the floor to get a better view of Ariadna. He took in her long silver hair, the fighting leathers she wore and the lumps against her gear where he was certain she had hidden other weapons. "Can you get off me now? I promise I won’t hurt you and neither will my friend.” he said.

  Ariadna could not contain her mighty laugh.

  “You? Hurt me? I don’t think you’d be able to hurt me even if you put all your energy and effort into it. Look how easily I’d managed to de-saddle you.” she mocked.

  The man made a bold attempt to throw his captor off him but, Ariadna sent a sharp jab of her palm against his chest and knocked the breath out of him; all whilst her other arm shot up to protect the right side of her face as the man lashed his hand out at her. The man let out a breathy curse.

  “Ari!” Preeya screamed, taking the assassin by surprise.

  Ariadna turned to find the second stalker advancing on her. She was on her feet before he could even raise a h
and against her and she sent her foot into his gut. Ariadna did not give him time to even fully comprehend what was going on, nor to take in the full extent of the pain she had inflicted on him. The assassin spun on her heel as she brought her leg up once more and gave it a powerful thrust outwards against his chest this time.

  The sound of a sword being drawn had Ariadna turning once more with a roll of her eyes.

  “You just don’t give up, do you?” she asked the first man, the one with dark brown hair. When she did not get an answer from him, Ariadna unsheathed a slim blade of her own, small for the purpose of skimming past his own weapon to get to a weak spot beneath his arm.

  Ariadna moved like the wind, taking the brown-haired man by surprise, and she began a dance of swords with him.

  Clank! Clank! Swish!

  Ariadna ducked as her competitor sent his blade towards her. She felt the shadow of his sword lick the back of her neck as she moved. When she straightened herself out, Ariadna spun around to clash her sword against the blonde-haired man’s own blade this time. She remained locked in a battle with both men, her body moving liked water as she dodged their blows so effortlessly it was as though she was not trying. Ariadna wasn’t trying, not really.

  “Stop! Stop it, all of you!” Preeya screamed from the side lines. She raised her voice enough to take the others by surprise and she waved her arms around frantically to get them to drop their swords. “This isn’t helping anyone!” she dropped her arms at the sight of her three companions pausing, their gazes locked on her with narrowed eyes. Preeya let loose an exaggerated breath. “Thank you.”

  The three of them blinked hard at the young priestess before Ariadna raised her weapon and swung it at the blonde-haired man this time; starting the fight all over again. She had no reason to trust them.

  It was this time around that the brown-haired man took Ariadna by surprise as he swung his sword at her again, all whilst his free hand unsheathed a small dagger and he forced the assassin back enough steps in his companion’s direction, to distract her attention away from him for long enough. The man took the opportunity to crouch down and lash his leg out beneath Ariadna’s feet.

  Ariadna took another step back in time to avoid getting caught on his boot. When she turned, she sheathed her weapon and raised her hands in the air. But it was not in defeat. Taking both men surprise, Ariadna made one final move against them and sent her fist into the blonde-haired man’s chest and she watched as he stumbled back, before losing his footing completely and falling to the ground.

  “Alright, I’ve had enough. This fight is boring me to death.” she said, having decided these men were of no threat at all.

  The brown-haired man sheathed his own blades and dusted himself off, from where he had dirtied his clothes after his multiple falls during the fight. He might have been a mercenary and a good one too but - this woman was something else!

  “Thank the gods. I was beginning to wonder how long we were going to be at it for.” he dropped to the floor in an exhausted heap and when he eventually found the strength to sit up, he braced his arms against his knees and asked, “So what are two pretty young women doing wandering around in the dark, alone? Who are you?”

  Ariadna was not bothered about the man’s pathetic attempt at a compliment, even if Preeya was. She was too busy being suspicious about the two men who had been stupid enough to follow them. She swaggered over to her horse and began rummaging through the saddlebags, so silent and calm it made the men wonder what she was planning on doing next. It appeared she was in no mood to be violent anymore, not as she turned around and beheld two thick strands of rope. Both men only let out a dramatic sigh each and looked to one another with inappropriate grins.

  “And here we were, thinking we’d just started getting along.” the blonde-haired man teased.

  Ariadna sent her foot into the brown-haired man’s side, a silent order for him to rise, and she frowned at him when he only extended his arms out for her to do what she needed to do.

  “I’ll give you my name for your own.” Ariadna said as she worked, making sure the rope bit into her captor’s skin enough to make him twitch.

  The brown-haired man winced but, he was not fazed enough to pull away as his wrists were bound together. “Troian. That’s Artus. We’re mercenaries, if you care enough to know but, we’re starting to like you both enough not to kill you just for fun.” he said. He raised a brow at Ariadna when she said nothing in response. “Well?” he asked her after some time.

  The assassin shoved him to the ground and then turned to bind Artus’ hands too but, to her own amusement she found Preeya already doing the same to him. At least she appeared to be doing a decent job of it even if the man was letting her. However, Preeya did not go so far as to knock him over too. Instead she left him standing where he was and drew back a few steps, for her own comfort.

  “Well what?” Ariadna asked Troian from where he still sat on the ground.

  “What’s your name? Ari, I think I overheard – is that short for anything?”

  The assassin gave him a half smile, and she took hold of the reins of both the mercenaries horses. “It’s short for none of your fucking business.” she replied coolly, just a lick of amusement in her voice. She pulled both horses towards where the road sloped down a little, leading them to the shade of a dying oak tree. It was enough to act as a cover for just a moment. Ariadna knew Preeya needed to rest awhile and in all truth, she was aching from all this riding too. She just needed to stretch her legs out for a bit. Troian and Artus followed after the silver-haired woman and watched as she left their horses beneath the oak tree.

  “If you still don’t trust us, perhaps there’s way for us to persuade you we aren’t a threat. That is, if our lack of interest in killing you and our charming behaviour hasn’t persuaded you enough already.” Artus looked to Preeya as he finished speaking and he sent her a smile.

  Preeya did not smile back or allow herself to blush this time as she knew Ariadna would be watching her; with eyes at the back of her head. She shuffled her boots against the dirt instead to keep herself from meeting Artus’ gaze.

  The assassin snorted at that. “Doubt it. You’ll quickly find I’m a hard person to win over.” she replied.

  Artus tried not to move his wrists around too much against the rope as he asked Preeya, "Is your friend always this polite?”

  Ariadna ignored his comment as she wandered around for a moment. Her arse was sore and her back ached; she wanted wine and a nice bed to lay in, more than anything. All the while, she ignored Troian’s gaze as it followed her around. She could not tell if he was interested in something about her, or whether he was simply keeping an eye out. Ariadna had gotten this far without him knowing her name although, she had suspicions that Troian already had a few guesses regarding her profession.

  “You said you’re both mercenaries. What are they?” Preeya asked. She sat down underneath the tree and leaned back against the trunk.

  Troian raised a brow at her. “You’ve never heard of a mercenary? Have you been living under a rock, girl?” he sounded more amused than he did angry. After all, what was there to be mad about? It was just an innocent question, no matter how daft it sounded in a society crawling with thieves, mercenaries and assassins. At that last thought, Troian slid his gaze back to Ariadna and half-smiled to himself. “Ask your assassin friend to explain. Nicely, if she can.”

  Ariadna turned around to face him, slow as though not to make her surprise too obvious. “What makes you think I’m an assassin?”

  Troian blew some dark hair out of his eyes and shuffled into a more comfortable position as he too sat back against the tree. He crossed his ankles over and smiled again.

  “Fighting leathers. Hidden weapons. Impeccable senses – well done for having known we were following you all along. Did we mention we’re mercenaries? We know what to look out for when analysing people too.”

  Ariadna folded her arms over her chest; silver hair swaying as she
moved. “Fair enough. Look, I’m on a tight schedule here. I have business to attend to and I don’t need two more sorry arses slowing me down – I already have this one,” she paused to point a finger at Preeya, “Holding me back from my work.”

  Preeya leapt to her feet and placed her hands onto her hips. “Why do you still insist on going after your sister and those priestesses? You’ve already murdered your own father, isn’t that revenge enough?” she asked.

  The assassin threw her arms up into the air.

  “Gods, here we go again. I’m an assassin, Preeya. It’s what I do. I kill people for money, most of the time I enjoy it. This is my own personal vendetta and I don’t need you acting as my moral conscience, whispering in my ear all the time.”

  Artus looked to Troian in thought. His brows furrowed together. “Priestesses?” he asked the assassin.

  Ariadna did not bother turning his way as she replied, “What’s it to you?”

  Troian found his feet, using the tree trunk to push himself up.

  “We’ve just abandoned a contract concerning priestesses. We’re part of the Khaishee Mercenaries and were called to Vhorgo; a vile place run by some demon Dictator by the name of Kanra Mortier.” he explained.

  Ariadna shrugged at that. “Can’t say I’ve ever heard of him. If he suddenly becomes a threat to me, I’m sure I’ll know about it.”

  Preeya, however, appeared to be growing nervous with each passing second. “What did the contract require you to do? With the priestesses that is?” she asked quietly. The last thing she wanted to do was anger Ariadna by revealing who she was and what she had recently escaped from herself. Both the mercenaries did not seem to think her unease was out of the ordinary. “More importantly, why did you leave? I’m surprised, as mercenaries, you aren’t being hunted down for betraying your own brotherhood.” Preeya asked.