if i stumble they're gonna eat me alive (closed)

[closerift]

Who: Cecily Trevelyan and Sharon Da Silva
What: Some unknown monsters take the two by surprise...
Where: Outside the city
When: 1/19
Warnings: Fighting, some violence, swearing

[ She's just on another patrol when something strikes her.

Cecily yelps, surprised, and is sent tumbling sideways. Whatever the thing was, the force of its collision sent her flying. The Inquisitor scrambles back to her feet as quickly as she can, eyes widening in the face of...whatever it is. ]

More? [ She feels as though they'd just dealt with the apex predators, but these are-...different. And there's more than one, she notices with a sinking feeling: there are four of these aquatic-seeming beasts. And only one of her, without Pup today, and without another ally. Her senses alight at the realization of how badly this could be, but she isn't about to give up.

She isn't about to die, either. Cecily makes a dash toward the city, but one of the monsters - with surprising speed - lashes out with one of its tentacles and knocks her off-balance. She makes another disgruntled sound as she manages to land on her feet, but the two hits have already been more than she'd expected. More than is good, considering she hasn't managed to strike back yet. ]

Shit.

Comments

[fogsong]

[ Cecily has a great more deal of luck than she may ever be aware of. Sharon's gotten into the mindless habit of wandering further and further from the city as the days go on; the tundra and cold freezes over her fears and worries and doubts and then she can walk with nothing in her mind, no thoughts, emptied for once.

She notices the creatures before she spots Cecily. Now, those looked more than a little familiar, though not because she's ever encountered them. And then she notices the way they movie, quick and... Fuck. Her heart jumps but no faster than she does into action. Her fingers are to her lips before she thinks and she lets lets out a high pitched whistle. She's already slipping off her pack and pulling out the only dagger she had on her. In her mind, she already had anger and fire stirring, darkness whispering, readying. ]

Hey there, you ugly fuckers! [ She stands up as straight as possible, all faux bravado and danger. Two to four just seems unfair. ]

[closerift]

[ Cecily nearly thanks the Maker aloud as Sharon appears and distracts at least some of the monsters. Instead, she gets steadied as fast as she can and faces them with her dagger drawn, teeth grit. ]

You always show up at the perfect moment, don't you? [ She breathes, glancing for only a second in the other woman's direction before she has to dodge out of the way of the tentacle strike aimed at her. ] Careful, they're - augh, quicker than you'd think!

[ Hopefully not venomous, but she wouldn't put it past any Hadriel creation. ]

Have you ever seen these before?

[fogsong]

People were attacked a couple of weeks back, someone was killed; I'm sure this is them! [ The creatures movements are bizarre and uncomfortable, like much of what they encounter, but it's immediately clear the danger they pose. They move like a unit with one goal: kill them. It's hard not feel flooded with terror. What would be their best move in this situation?

With their speed, running isn't likely to get them far. Sharon moves in with caution and careful speed, using the time and space between them and her to gather a flickering orb of fire. By that time, two of them have fully turned the attention on her, the flame wicked and wild. She doesn't waste another second before she sends it at them, hoping to damage their exposed appendages. Of course, they're quick and manage to get out of the way, though given the strange sound one lets out, she's sure she's done something.

A sick scent of something fishy tingles her nostrils.

She gathers more fire but holy shit can they move fast. Her stomach somersaults. One gets close enough to lash out but Sharon stumbles back, pushing a weak wave of fire forward to get her distance. It's only when she feels something cool on her abdomen does she realize she's been hit but there's nothing to be done about it right now. Distance now, distance and fire. ]

They have to have weak spots, right? [ Sharon is not a trained fighter, though she's gotten better in the weeks since she started training. Maybe like clams, their shells need to be cracked open. ]

[closerift]

They usually do! [ But they're more strong than they are weak. Cecily's dagger and Sharon's flames work to injure some of the creatures, but they're definitively outnumbered. Maybe outmatched. ]

If we can't retreat, then we'll just have to fight with everything we have. [ If they die, they'll come back, which is...a small comfort, at least. Still, she isn't interested in dying today. ] If we can flank one...!

[ It seems impossible, though. The creatures are too quick and the range of their tentacles is greater than she'd guessed. She gets lashed, knocked down a few times, rising again with grit teeth and fire in her eyes. ]

Damn it! Blighted...things...! [ Finally she lands a good slash across one as it misses her, and it makes another shriek, increases the salty smell that hangs in the air alongside the copper of blood. ]

[fogsong]

[ She should have spent more time honing her abilities, should have spent more time learning to fight, to defend herself. The regret just lasts a second as she twists her body, narrowly avoiding a deadly hit to the chest, and she makes a silent, brief promise to do something if she survives this; learn something, better herself.

It takes a single glance in her friend's direction for her to misstep, for something bright and sharp to penetrate her shoulder. She falls backwards with a shriek of pain, hitting the ground with force. She rolls, scrambling to avoid one of the creatures as it pounces. The pain makes her feel nauseous and, in panic, she lashes out. An invisible force slams two of the creatures closest to her together with a sharp crack.

It takes them a moment to recover, injured and unbalanced, granting her enough time to gain some distance, gripping her bloodied shoulder. ]

[closerift]

Sharon! [ The other woman is struck, but she looks...well. Not dead. Cecily exhales roughly, whipping back around just in time for one of the monsters to swing a few of its tentacles at her, sending her flying yet again. This time she isn't able to catch herself and she crashes to the ground in a sort of rolling fall, hissing with pain all the way.

It isn't looking good, she thinks, not for the first time.

The hit gives her a little time to get back up, particularly since Sharon's reflexive attack dazed two of the beasts, but they still have a long way to go and only the pair of them to fight. She swallows some blood and stretches the fingers on her hand, silently praying to someone or something that they're able to pull this off. ]

If we could stun all of them, we could...take advantage, or at least get more help. [ She doubts she'd have the time to send out a message to anyone in the midst of an active fight. ] Is there any chance that you could trap them temporarily in a ring of fire, or something like that?

[fogsong]

[ Sharon was far from death, knew too well what it felt like to fear it too much, but the warm blood oozing from her wounds and the blinding flashes of pain were near enough to make her wish for it. Cecily's call is just sound in her head but she instinctively checks on her, just in time for the older woman to hit the ground.

She scrambles and rushes towards her friend, ripping her coat from her body without a single word. Alessa could encircle the world in fire if she wished it so why couldn't Sharon? She tosses the article of clothing at the creatures, ignoring the searing pain as her wounds stretched and tore further. They react as if it were a weapon, lashing out, but the secondary distraction as she gets to her friend is more than enough for her to set the item ablaze.

The fire just startles them but then it grows. Just the coat, at first, but it acts more like kindling for something nearly inflammable. The ground catches, patches of grass, frozen land never meant to thaw. The fire rises up, circling them tightly, the heat blistering if not bearable for the time being. Sharon moves in as close to Cecily as she can as the fire whips, breathing heavy, sweat trickling down her brow.

She didn't trap the creatures, she trapped them, but the strange beasts make no attempt to approach. ]

N-Not quite what I was going for. [ Give her a breath, a moment, and she'll push the flames further away and, hopefully, send those creatures running. ] I hope you don't mind a.. fuck, a little heat.