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Tarquin nodded slowly, "I'm not really sure how to thank you... this was completely unexpected."
Vana smiled, "Do what you need to do and end the race crisis, and that will be thanks enough," her smile disappeared suddenly, "And don't underestimate my sister just because she's a woman; I've seen her matches, she's faster than a viper."
The mercenary nodded, "Don't worry, I won't. If I underestimated someone just because they were a woman, I'd be dead... several times over."
"Ah, an equal opportunity killer, hm?"
"If I'm being attacked, yes," Tarquin chuckled, "Death doesn't discriminate, neither do I."
Vana looked down as turned away slightly, "I've stayed away too long already... I should go."
Tarquin frowned, "Ah, of course... thanks again."
Vana turned to him suddenly and stuck out her hand, "I want to tell you, Tarquin... I wish I was the woman you were looking for."
The mercenary gave her a curious smile as he reached out and shook her hand firmly, "Coming from you, that is quite possibly the highest compliment I have ever been paid. if it means anything, the feelings are mutual."
Vana blushed slightly, but kept her eyes on his, "Good luck."
He let go of her hand and watched her walk out of the garden, and he felt a hard tug of disappointment in his chest, "Yeah... I really wish it could have been you too," he muttered under his breath.
"And you still smell like lavender!" Tarquin laughed as he patted Axis' side. "What did they do to you last night, buddy?"
Both raptor and rider were traipsing merrily through the streets at an easy pace as they made their way to the southern gate. It was as normal a day as any, and the weather was holding up nicely. As the two made their way further and further outside the more populated areas of the city, fewer and fewer people even looked in their direction, and soon they were almost completely alone.
"Nice country," Tarquin commented as they rode outside the gate. "You're gonna get spoiled running around on all this grass and clover, Axis. Don't get used to it.
Axis snorted in reply as he crush a dandelion on his way forward.
They rode several miles down the road until Tarquin saw signs of what had to be the red fields. The flowers and clover on the ground changed to a deep red grass, and the landscape looked as if it were covered in some sort of red sheet. Tarquin guided Axis off the main road and meandered onto the red fields, and several hills later, he spotted what he was looking for.
There was a lone horse in the distance, and some distance away from it, a person was practicing with a sword. Tarquin kept his pace and rode straight towards them, not wanting to take any more time than he needed to.
As the mercenary approached more closely, the outline of the swordsman looked more and more like a swordswoman, and soon it was clear that the wielder of the blade was female.
Tarquin watched as the woman faced him squarely, and though he was still some distance away, she was staring right at him.
"Alright buddy, let me do all the talking," he whispered to Axis as they came within earshot and slowed down.
The young woman, who could only be the dancer he'd seen the night before with her silver hair and startling blue eyes, shouted calmly out at him, "What business do you have here, raptor rider?"
Tarquin slowed to a complete stop and waved his hand, "First off, hello." He dropped down from Axis and showed both of his hands, "Tarquin is my name, and this isn't an ambush of any sort, so you can rest easy."
Ashey looked him over suspiciously, "Very well... Tarquin. What do you want?"
"Tarquin crossed his arms, "You're not going to introduce yourself?"
The silver haired girl looked confused for a moment before she scowled, "If you're here, then you must know who am I already. Unless you were just passing through randomly?"
The mercenary chuckled, "Fair enough. Yes, I know who you are, you're the ballet dancer I saw last night."
She was unable to hide her surprise, "You attended the sabre ballet?"
"I did indeed. To be honest, I thought I was going to bored off my ass, but it was far more engaging than I expected it to be. A bunch of highly skilled, scantily clad women dancing around with sharp objects: yes please," he laughed.
She winced as her expressions cycled from confused to irritated then back to confused, "Did you need something from me? Or did you come all the way out here to chat?"
"Both. I've heard a lot about you, and I wanted to come see for myself if you were as good as everyone says you are."
Her eyes narrowed, "That depends on what subject you're asking about. I'm assuming you're not a ballet dancer, so that leaves this," she said as she turned her sword in her wrist.
"Right again. You're a renowned fencer and renowned dancer, but how many real fights have you been in?" Tarquin asked with a sly grin.
"I don't see the need to divulge anything to you; you're a complete stranger and there's nothing for me to gain by continuing this conversation."
"So, never then," Tarquin continued to smile. "You could have just said that."
Her eyebrow twitched, "And I'm sure you've killed hundreds of people with that sword on your back; what's it to me? Fencing is a sport, raptor rider; there's more to it than just rending your opponent artlessly and making mincemeat out of them. I don't expect you to understand, but that is precisely why I'm ending this conversation right now. Whatever you have to say, I'm not interested."
Tarquin chuckled, "Well, that's all very expected of you, from what I've heard."
Her shoulders tensed, "What do you mean?"
"You don't even bother to greet me as I ride up to you, you make assumptions about my intentions, accuse me of not being able to understand your fine sport, then you dismiss me like a child."
The blue in Ashey's eyes intensified as she glowered at him, "What do you want? Who told you where to find me?"
"Who told me is unimportant, but I'll tell you what I want," Tarquin replied as he took a step closer to the young woman. She was far shorter and smaller than he was, but he faced her squarely and looked directly into her eyes, "You're right, I have killed a lot of people; I'm a mercenary, that's what we do. I love fighting, and I am so invested in my lifestyle that I wouldn't be able to stop fighting even if I tried. That being said, I get so few opportunities to fight truly skilled opponents that sometimes I get bored and I start thinking that maybe I'm better than I actually am. If that happens, I'll die. I heard that you were one of the best fencers in the entire region, and I wanted to test my skill against yours... but I see now that you may not be as skilled as I hoped."
Ashey's face became almost feral for a moment, but she was able to control her temper, albeit with much effort, "You are goading me, and for what? I have done nothing to you, raptor rider, and I have no interest in your petty challenge. I'm certain you could chop me clean in half with that sword of yours, but that isn't fencing, that's merely..."
"Again, you assume," Tarquin laughed and shook his head, "Goodness, is your entire family like this?" He took a deep breath and frowned slightly, "I'm coming to your arena, Ashey, not the other way around. You wouldn't last a day on a battlefield, we both know it, and there is no shame in that. You aren't a soldier, and you certainly aren't built for heavy combat, but that was never my intention. Despite all that, you have something that most soldiers don't: pure skill. I want that. Say and think what you will about me, but I understand the spirit that burns inside of you, and you don't pick up that blade just for bragging rights. You do it for yourself... to fulfill something inside of yourself that you can't even put your finger on."
Her eyes softened for a moment, "So you intend to face me with a rapier in hand?"
He took a step back, "Naturally. Or a sabre, or an epee, or a poignard... pick your poison. Fighting isn't just about killing, and only a true fighter understands what that means. The rush you get, the excitement... the completion when you succeed, the drive to do better and push forward when you fail. It's exhilarating in a way that few people understand."
The young woman looked down for a long moment in hard contemplation, "You truly wish to challenge me?"
"Yes. In fact, I've come a long way to do so."
Ashey looked up at him carefully, "What are the stakes? What do you have to offer me as a prize if I best you?"
Tarquin's eyes widened, "Quite confident, aren't you?" He unbuckled the sword on his back like he'd done with Vana and showed it to the girl, "Zinstar steel. You could melt it down and have it remade into a thrusting blade...hell, there might even be enough steel there to make more than one weapon."
Ashey looked over the blade and her eyes danced, "It's a beautiful piece... but I have no use for it," she added as she looked away.
Tarquin frowned, "It's the most valuable thing I own, besides my raptor, Axis. I would gamle him as well, if I thought you would take him as collateral for a match."
"Why does this mean so much to you?" Ashey shook her head.
"Because the reward for your loss to me is high. I'm on a serious mission, or so I have been led to believe, and your cooperation is of utmost importance."
"What do you need me or?" She asked him incredulously.
Tarquin took a deep breath, "Have you ever wondered why your hair is silver and your eyes are so blue?"
She gave him a surprised look, "Yes... at times."
"You are a descendant of Obran Wyuvish, the sky smith. That makes you one one thousandth percent god, or something like that."
Her eyes widened, "Where are you citing your information from? How could you possibly know that?"
"Ne'Shita, the goddess of order, told me," he replied surely.
"Ne'Shita," Ashey narrowed her eyes once more, "What kind of elaborate ruse is this? Would you stack one lie on top of the other just to convince me to..."
"My god!" Tarquin laughed, "You really do have your mind made up about me, don't you?" He shook his head, "This is getting us nowhere. Even if I told you the truth, you wouldn't believe me," he shook his head, "Vana was right about you."
Ashey stiffened as her eyes flashed, "What? Is she the one who told you where I was? What does she want with me? Why is she..."
"She's got nothing to do with this," Tarquin cut her off once more. "This is between you and me. If you're so confident in your ability, then you shouldn't have a problem agreeing to whatever my terms are, but you're still hesitant. I want to fight you because the idea of facing off against a master such as yourself is a reward in of itself, but I do have an ulterior motive. In order for me to fulfill my charge, I need to have sex with you, Ashey, and I'll do whatever I need to in order to accomplish that."
The silver haired girl raised her sword slightly as she blushed violently, "W,what?" She looked down as her face turned a deeper crimson, "You pig... get the hell away from me! To even suggest that I would..."
"Are you that afraid of me?" Tarquin asked, cutting her off for a third time. He wasn't sure if he'd been too blunt or not, but it didn't seem like the girl was responding to polite conversation.
"I'm not afraid you!" She clutched her sword tightly as she stared up at him defiantly, "I could punch a dozen holes in you right now before you could so much as take a step back."
"And I'm giving you an opportunity to prove that," Tarquin forced eye contact with her. "I'm not asking for a fucking deathmatch, woman, and you don't need to call me names. I'm willing to put everything I have on the line for a match up with you, and you're losing your shit over the idea of having sex with me? How many men have you matched up against?" He asked her suddenly.
She took a deep breath, "Three."
"And you beat them all?"
"Yes," she answered him quickly as she began to regain her composure.
"And you only compete in the female league, yes?"
She snorted, "That's the only league I can compete in! That's the only league that exists! There isn't a single gender mixed league in the country; it's generally assumed that most male opponents would overpower the female opponents. Because of that, I will never be considered the greatest fencer in the country..." she trailed off.
"Do you believe that's fair?" He asked her seriously.
"No," she almost whispered as she took a step back. "Shit..." she took a deep breath, "I'm sorry I overreacted. I don't know how to deal with this."
Tarquin frowned slightly as he felt a small stab of guilt, "I mean, to be fair, I did just come out of nowhere and challenge you to a duel, then I told you I needed to have sex with you."
She laughed, and for the first time ever, he saw her smile, "Yes, to be fair, you did do that." She took a deep breath as her blush returned, "So why... why do you need to sleep with me?"
"Ne'Shita is trying to solve the race crisis. She put magic inside of me, and I need to put that magic inside of you," he answered easily.
She stared at the ground, "That sounds insane."
"Yeah, it really does, but here, look," he stuck out his palm to her as he had with Vana, "There were three marks on this map; when I slept with the demon princess, Crizet, the first mark disappeared."
Ashey's eyes widened, "You slept with Crizet? Crizet of Makdesh?"
"That's the only one I know of. It wasn't easy. I had to fight three rounds in the arena and her dad tried to kill me in secret. My point is, I have a chance to do things a little more honorably this time around, and it's not my intention to take a chauvinistic shit on your honor." He chuckled, "All that fake, allegedly manly, demeaning shit doesn't get a person very far on the battlefield, and there are plenty of places in the world where you would be recognized for your skill. As someone who has seen many different cultures, I can tell you that there is a lot of prejudice in the world, but I personally only judge people based on their pride and force of will. If you want to be the best fencer in the country, or hell, the whole world, the only thing that's stopping you is yourself. In the same way, if I can't come to you directly and challenge you because I'm too afraid that your nobility and gender are things I can't breach, then that's a problem as well. You want equality, this is it. If you think you can kick my ass, then I'd like to see you try, but I'm sure as hell not gonna stick around if you keep throwing insults at me for giving you the same kind of courtesy you desire from everyone else."
Ashey exhaled sharply, "What will you do if I refuse?"
"I don't know," he answered honestly. "Probably go back to Ne'Shita and tell her that I couldn't do it."
Ashey swallowed hard, "How did you meet Vana?"
"I met her yesterday at the mattatti course outside of the city. She treated me largely the same way you did in the beginning, and I had to beat her mattatti score in order to even get anything out of her."
"You beat her score?" Ashey asked, once more surprised.
"By a few seconds, nothing too spectacular."
The silver haired girl sighed, "My father will not allow this, Tarquin."
"Your father doesn't have to know. You're a grown woman, Ashey, you can make these decisions on your own. I could be wrong, but it doesn't seem like you want your father's empire any more than Vana does."
"How much did she tell you about our situation?" Ashey sheathed her sword into its scabbard at her hip.
Tarquin sheathed his blade as well, "Enough."
Ashey pursed her lips, "I see." She paused before continuing, "I will fight you, mercenary. A first blood match, below the neck, above the waist, no thrusts or jabs. If you win, I will give my body to you and you can do what you must, but if I win, I want you to kill my father."
It was Tarquin's eyes that widened that time, "Kill your father? Why?"
The blue eyed girl walked stepped towards Axis and reached out to him, "Because I am unable to do it myself. I don't know how much Vana told you, but my father is slowly slipping into madness. He is all but enslaving us and he won't listen to reason. He is so lucid when his council is around that no one suspects his lunacy, but I've seen it manifest itself in small ways over the past few months. I can't stand by and watch him throw our lives away simply to uphold his crazy obsession for an heir, but I love him dearly, which is why..." she fought tears as she stroked Axis' neck, "I can't stand to see him get any worse. I know I am asking for a lot, but so are you. You are a man who is obviously accustomed to death, and you have the stones to follow through with it. I would help you escape, of course, and there would be no threat of you being killed or imprisoned for it. So..." she faced him in earnest, "That is my condition."
Tarquin nodded once, and there was no smile on his face, "I agree to the terms of our fight. Tell me when and where and I'll be there."
The armory was located beside the western gate, and as Tarquin approached it, the late evening sun was barely setting over the wall.
The stone building was relatively small and nondescript, and there were likely a few dozen exactly like it scattered around the city. It was a standard militia armory, probably stuffed to the brim with cheap, reliable weapons that anyone could use in the event of a full scale attack, but currently it looked like it was being completely ignored.
The mercenary approached the building and tried the door. As he'd hoped, it was unlocked, and he looked around before he slipped inside.
Gas torches lit the inside of the building brightly, and weapons and armor were stacked up in excess along the walls.
In the center of the room, Ashey was sitting and stretching, and she acknowledged his presence with a nod, "Glad you found the place."
He nodded as he looked around, "This a secret hideout of yours?"
"Of sorts," she replied as she stood. "We haven't had a major war in ages, so no one comes here except to perform routine maintenance on the equipment."
"Cozy," he smiled as he looked around. He was wearing the tightest leather tunic he owned, and he'd left most all of his belongings, including his sword, back at the inn.
Ashey was wearing a tight fitting fencing jacket that was entirely white, tights, and high white boots that went up to her calves.
"Are you familiar with basic fencing rules?" She asked him as she reached for a wooden case on the ground beside her.
"Not really. I know there's a complicated scoring system, but that's about it."
She opened the case and took up one of the ornate sabres that was inside of it, "None of those rules will apply here. As I said earlier, we fight to first blood. Cuts made at the arms, hands and torso are acceptable; anywhere above the shoulders and below the waist will render the offender disqualified. Also, no jabs or thrusts; we're not trying to kill each other, as you stated earlier."
Tarquin smiled surely, "I am relieved to hear that."
She handed him the weapon and took its matching partner out of the case, "Both of these swords are identical. They are the same weight and length, and neither one of us will have a weapon advantage."
The mercenary took the sword and tested its weight in his hand. Compared to what he was used to wielding, it felt light as a feather, but after stepping back and performing a few flourishes, he thought he could manage.
"Anything else I need to know?" He asked as he faced her.
"No, that's it. if you're ready to start, we can begin."
The mercenary, of course, did not enjoy prolonging combat, so he nodded and took his place in front of her.
"We start like this," she said as she raised her blade in front of her. "I've drawn a line here," she said, tapping with her foot, "Since our bout will be endless until someone wins, unless you need to take a break at some point, and our playing area is realistically the entire room."
