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<blockquote data-quote="Drusilia Nailo" data-source="post: 641633" data-attributes="member: 2062">Dru turned to face the people in the front room.&nbsp; There were three men, dressed in rough leathers, hastily pulling swords from sheathes and rising to their feet. One of them blustered,&nbsp; &quot;What the h***l is going on here?&quot;&nbsp;&nbsp; He was obviously the leader.&nbsp; This must be Merck.&nbsp; His face was reddened, and he stared at Dru incredulously.&nbsp; His gaze went over her then, fastening on Papa.&nbsp; He paled.&nbsp; &nbsp; Dru growled, and charged at him.&nbsp; How dare he be more frightened of Papa than of her!&nbsp; She thrust her rapier into his midsection, and then viciously ripped it back out.&nbsp; &quot;You tried to have me killed, pathetic human scum!&quot;&nbsp; &nbsp; He looked momentarily surprised, and then sneered through his pain.&nbsp; &quot;Tensin, I'm so glad that you decided to give your daughter up to me,&quot; he said, stabbing towards Dru with his blade, missing.&nbsp; &nbsp; Papa didn't say a word to him, but instead hurled one of his throwing knives across the room.&nbsp; The thin flying blade sunk deep into a warrior's eye.&nbsp; The warrior staggered, and then fell, stone dead, to the floor.&nbsp; &nbsp; Kennic moved in, his rapier flashing outward with great speed, dropping the other warrior with two rapid strikes.&nbsp; &nbsp; Dru stabbed at Merck again, her blow a weak one that he was easily able to parry.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &quot;You should never send a child to do a man's work,&quot; said the man contemptuously, slicing into Dru's shoulder deeply with his blade.&nbsp; He grinned as her shoulder was engulfed in red.&nbsp;&nbsp; &quot;I might even let your daughter live if you take her and get out now,&quot; he said.&nbsp; &quot;Of course, there will be certain consequences for this...invasion.&quot;&nbsp; &nbsp; Papa's response was to hurl another throwing dagger at him, around his daughter.&nbsp; The blade found its mark in the man's stomach, piercing through his leather armor as if it wasn't there.&nbsp; &quot;I do not believe that there is anything that my daughter has to worry about,&quot; he coolly informed the human thug.&nbsp; &nbsp; Dru scowled, irritated that this Merck had swept her aside so easily, and so contemptuously.&nbsp; She thrust her rapier at him again, while he was distracted by Papa's dagger.&nbsp; This time her blade struck him, in the groin.&nbsp; &nbsp; He paled, bending over from the pain of it.&nbsp; &quot;B***h!&quot;&nbsp; &nbsp; Like lightning, Papa was across the room, pulling the man's head back, exposing his throat.&nbsp; &quot;Cut it,&quot; he said to Dru, over him.&nbsp; &quot;Make an example out of him.&quot;&nbsp; &nbsp; Dru looked at the man, at the loathing in his eyes, and felt a twinge of regret.&nbsp; She'd never killed someone in cold blood before.&nbsp; She looked down at her wounds, and then stiffened.&nbsp; He had made two attempts to kill her, and would likely keep trying.&nbsp; She sheathed her rapier, and pulled a dagger.&nbsp; Taking a step forward and drawing in a deep breath to steady herself, she slashed his throat.&nbsp; &quot;No one f***s with a Naïlo,&quot; she said, voice shaking.&nbsp; &quot;With any Naïlo.&quot;&nbsp; &nbsp; &quot;Very good,&quot; said Papa in satisfaction, dropping the body to the floor without ceremony.&nbsp; &nbsp; The trio of elves moved quietly amongst the fallen bodies, moving towards the hall.&nbsp; &quot;Be careful,&quot; whispered Kennic.&nbsp; &nbsp; Dru moved up to the first door, and nudged it open with her toe.&nbsp; It swung open silently, revealing an empty room, filled with shelves, and food.&nbsp; &quot;Pantry,&quot; she muttered quietly, walking to the next door.&nbsp; &nbsp; The next door revealed what had to be a bedroom.&nbsp; There was a human woman standing there, wearing nothing but a nightgown.&nbsp; She had a dagger clenched in her hands, and she glared at the girl.&nbsp; &quot;Who do you think you are?&nbsp; You killed my husband!&quot;&nbsp; She launched herself at Dru, knife first.&nbsp; &nbsp; Surprised as she was at the spirited if not talented charge, Dru was able to step aside at the last moment.&nbsp; The women went careening into Papa, and then crashed to the floor, blood gushing from her throat.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Papa looked down at her impassively, watching her die at his feet.&nbsp; &quot;I think that we've killed everyone here,&quot; he said to Dru.&nbsp; &quot;There might be a remnant of his gang somewhere, but I do not believe that they will survive without his leadership, such as it was.&quot;&nbsp; He kicked aside the woman's limp body to clear a path, and then turned to regard his daughter's stricken face.&nbsp; &nbsp; &quot;You - just killed her.&quot;&nbsp; &nbsp; &quot;Yes,&quot; he said, his tone implying that he didn't see what the problem was.&nbsp;&nbsp; He took Dru's arm, and pulled her around the body, and out of the room.&nbsp; &quot;Come.&nbsp; We should go home.&nbsp; I have scheduled us for a dinner with Judge Merin, and it's important that we look good.&quot;&nbsp; &nbsp; Dru let herself be led from the house and up the street.&nbsp; She felt stricken, wondering if she truly knew her father at all.&nbsp; She was starting to believe that she did not.&nbsp; As they approached the kesir, she started to steady herself a little, and by the time that they approached the Naïlo compound, she felt that she could function again.&nbsp; &quot;Well, I certainly hope that I started to build my reputation,&quot; she said brightly, at a loss of what else to say.&nbsp; &nbsp; Papa smiled at her, opening the door.&nbsp; &quot;You have,&quot; he said.&nbsp; &quot;Fortunately, you are getting an early start.&quot;&nbsp; He paused, and put a hand on her shoulder.&nbsp; &quot;I am proud of you.&nbsp; You are strong.&quot;&nbsp; &nbsp; Dru felt a glow of pride then, which at least for the present, overwhelmed her shock at Papa's casual brutality.&nbsp;&nbsp; &quot;I can be ready to leave shortly,&quot; she told him, walking past the guards, back to the room that she was using as her own.&nbsp; &nbsp; It was time to switch roles, into that of doting and ladylike daughter.&nbsp; She sighed.&nbsp; This was not something that she'd ever been good at...</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Drusilia Nailo, post: 641633, member: 2062"] Dru turned to face the people in the front room. There were three men, dressed in rough leathers, hastily pulling swords from sheathes and rising to their feet. One of them blustered, "What the h***l is going on here?" He was obviously the leader. This must be Merck. His face was reddened, and he stared at Dru incredulously. His gaze went over her then, fastening on Papa. He paled. Dru growled, and charged at him. How dare he be more frightened of Papa than of her! She thrust her rapier into his midsection, and then viciously ripped it back out. "You tried to have me killed, pathetic human scum!" He looked momentarily surprised, and then sneered through his pain. "Tensin, I'm so glad that you decided to give your daughter up to me," he said, stabbing towards Dru with his blade, missing. Papa didn't say a word to him, but instead hurled one of his throwing knives across the room. The thin flying blade sunk deep into a warrior's eye. The warrior staggered, and then fell, stone dead, to the floor. Kennic moved in, his rapier flashing outward with great speed, dropping the other warrior with two rapid strikes. Dru stabbed at Merck again, her blow a weak one that he was easily able to parry. "You should never send a child to do a man's work," said the man contemptuously, slicing into Dru's shoulder deeply with his blade. He grinned as her shoulder was engulfed in red. "I might even let your daughter live if you take her and get out now," he said. "Of course, there will be certain consequences for this...invasion." Papa's response was to hurl another throwing dagger at him, around his daughter. The blade found its mark in the man's stomach, piercing through his leather armor as if it wasn't there. "I do not believe that there is anything that my daughter has to worry about," he coolly informed the human thug. Dru scowled, irritated that this Merck had swept her aside so easily, and so contemptuously. She thrust her rapier at him again, while he was distracted by Papa's dagger. This time her blade struck him, in the groin. He paled, bending over from the pain of it. "B***h!" Like lightning, Papa was across the room, pulling the man's head back, exposing his throat. "Cut it," he said to Dru, over him. "Make an example out of him." Dru looked at the man, at the loathing in his eyes, and felt a twinge of regret. She'd never killed someone in cold blood before. She looked down at her wounds, and then stiffened. He had made two attempts to kill her, and would likely keep trying. She sheathed her rapier, and pulled a dagger. Taking a step forward and drawing in a deep breath to steady herself, she slashed his throat. "No one f***s with a Naïlo," she said, voice shaking. "With [i]any[/i] Naïlo." "Very good," said Papa in satisfaction, dropping the body to the floor without ceremony. The trio of elves moved quietly amongst the fallen bodies, moving towards the hall. "Be careful," whispered Kennic. Dru moved up to the first door, and nudged it open with her toe. It swung open silently, revealing an empty room, filled with shelves, and food. "Pantry," she muttered quietly, walking to the next door. The next door revealed what had to be a bedroom. There was a human woman standing there, wearing nothing but a nightgown. She had a dagger clenched in her hands, and she glared at the girl. "Who do you think you are? You killed my husband!" She launched herself at Dru, knife first. Surprised as she was at the spirited if not talented charge, Dru was able to step aside at the last moment. The women went careening into Papa, and then crashed to the floor, blood gushing from her throat. Papa looked down at her impassively, watching her die at his feet. "I think that we've killed everyone here," he said to Dru. "There might be a remnant of his gang somewhere, but I do not believe that they will survive without his leadership, such as it was." He kicked aside the woman's limp body to clear a path, and then turned to regard his daughter's stricken face. "You - just killed her." "Yes," he said, his tone implying that he didn't see what the problem was. He took Dru's arm, and pulled her around the body, and out of the room. "Come. We should go home. I have scheduled us for a dinner with Judge Merin, and it's important that we look good." Dru let herself be led from the house and up the street. She felt stricken, wondering if she truly knew her father at all. She was starting to believe that she did not. As they approached the [i]kesir,[/i] she started to steady herself a little, and by the time that they approached the Naïlo compound, she felt that she could function again. "Well, I certainly hope that I started to build my reputation," she said brightly, at a loss of what else to say. Papa smiled at her, opening the door. "You have," he said. "Fortunately, you are getting an early start." He paused, and put a hand on her shoulder. "I am proud of you. You are strong." Dru felt a glow of pride then, which at least for the present, overwhelmed her shock at Papa's casual brutality. "I can be ready to leave shortly," she told him, walking past the guards, back to the room that she was using as her own. It was time to switch roles, into that of doting and ladylike daughter. She sighed. This was not something that she'd ever been good at... [/QUOTE]

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