To Love, Once Again

The wind blows in Sera's ears with the speed at which Lucien was moving.

"How many do you see?"

Luckily, the rain of arrows and knives had stopped, for now. It was harder to chase someone when you were trying to attack them at the same time.

Especially when the person that was being chased was faster than any olympic medal-track sprinter. The assassins were gritting their teeth as they chased after the two. How was that man still faster than them when carrying a woman in his arms?!

And he'd taken out a a few of them as he ran, too.

That King was a monster.

Just a few more blocks. Past the alleys where other assailants jumped out at them, till Lucien and Sera could get to the side-gate that would let them out of the city.

Sera squints her eyes and looks at the figures chasing them.

"Maybe 15-20?" She calls back to him.

The few that had been disguised as commoners numbered 6 people. The others, maybe 20. It was too hard to see, and when they were all dressed similarly, flashing in and out between the light of the lampposts, it made it more difficult to keep a correct count.

"There could be more." Sera adds on, unsure.

Lucien frowns, analyzing the situation in his head. That's too many. And for them to be chasing Lucien and Sera with such confidence.....

He veers off to the side, into a network of alleyways where jumbled shapes of junk and large jars containing trash sit, lining the backdoors and tall walls.

"Why aren't we going to the gate?" Sera asks him, her heartbeat thumping with each step he takes.

"It's too obvious, when the way forward is so open but they're chasing us from behind. The side-gate must already be controlled by them." Lucien's response makes Sera blink in surprise. She hadn't thought that far ahead. It was strange, now that she thought about it. Only 2 assassins attacking them from the front while the rest chased after them from behind.

This was a well thought out, coordinated attack.

Putting on a burst of speed, Lucien spies some empty wooden crates stacked up high into a tower in front of a shuttered store.

This wasn't going to work. He couldn't keep running from them like this.

Wood shatters as he kicks out the bottom crate, leaving the plates and bowls that had been wrapped in hay clattering to the ground and breaking into sharp pieces. The whole tower of crates sways, and falls behind the two with a crashing, booming sound, cutting off the assassins from them.

Lucien catches his breath, and readjusts his hold on Sera's waist.

"Try speaking to the ring. Imagine the Elder and call for them" He tells her, when grappling hooks sink into the roof above their heads, their attackers about to jump over the obstacle.

Sera hurriedly brings her fist to her mouth, her lips touching the ring as she speaks with urgency into the ring.

"Elder? We're being attacked-"

Sera's words get cut off when Lucien grunts, stumbling. A dagger had hit the back of his thigh, close to the joint on the back of his knee.

The ring gives a dull glow as it lights up, but then dims again.

"Damn it! Someone's blocking the mana flow"

These attackers were prepared. If they installed some sort of anti-magic muffling device..no magic communication could get out. For both sides.

Even if the Elder arrived while the assassins still surrounded them, there was no guarantee that the other side didn't have their own magician.

If things came down to a battle between magicians....Lucien wouldn't be able to protect Sera. Swearing under his breath, he runs, wet blood streaming out of his shoulder from where his wound from the challenge had opened.

The wrinkles between Sera's brows deepen."Lucien, your shoulder!!"

Sera tries to stem the blood flow by pressing her hands against the wound.

"Don't worry about it. It doesn't hurt that badly" As things were, they wouldn't be able to leave the town alive if they ran for the gate.

Tapping against the walls with his feet, Lucien flips between alleyways, switching and veering until they've lost their pursuers, for now.

Lucien holds his breath, concentrating his hearing for the hints that would show them where the attackers were. Sight wasn't the only source of information you could use in a fight.

The sound of light footsteps tapping against stone as the dark figures move in different directions, some further from them, others, drawing closer to where they were. Good. There was still some time.

He needed to hide Sera in a safe place, and draw them off.

Carefully setting Sera down on her feet, Lucien starts to dig into a pile of hay and rubble left off to the side of an unfinished building. There were other stacks of bricks and buckets, construction materials, but Lucien quickly lifts Sera into the middle of the stack of hay and starts covering her with it.

"Hide here for now."

"What about you, Lucien?"

Sera grabs Lucien's tunic, asking him with desperation. Where was he going? Was he going to fight them by himself!?

"I'll draw them off" He pulls off his outer tunic and covers Sera with it, knowing the darker color of the clothing would hide her pink dress and help her from being noticed.

"But-" Lucien shushes her.

"We don't have enough time. Here-" He hands her the poorly-made sword, making sure her fingers have a firm grip around the hilt.

Sera looks up at Lucien, face tense with worry for him.

"Wait for 2 hours, and if I don't come back, try calling the Elder by speaking into the ring."

Taking her hand in his, he points the the silver ring, the one he'd proposed to her with, on her finger.

Lucien was going to go fight them off.

Stroking her cheek, Lucien gives her another rare, reassuring smile. She should be alright. Lucien knew he was the bigger prize, and the assassins would chase after him, a King, rather than someone who they thought was only a mistress.

"I'll be fine."

He pushes down the wrinkles forming between her brows with his thumb.

That was the last thing she saw, before Lucien puts some more hay over her head, covering her vision.