Megra froze as she watched Boran fall, her eyes unblinking as a pool of red expanded across the ground from where he laid. The world suddenly felt distant as all feeling left her limbs and her very senses seemed to dull. Even her voice failed her, producing only a small croak as she reached to steady herself. A few shocked faces looked to their mistress hoping for guidance but, finding none they could only stare at the brutal scene. Silence fell over the place as a satisfied Laoise lazily wiped the blood from her blade relishing in the defeated expressions of the crowd.

Then from somewhere in that mass came a cry.  A  desperate sound so full of rage and pain it stilled the lioness. A moment later Miriana bounded forward, the call bellowing from her throat as she charged. By the time her blade crashed against Laoise's, her roar was part of a chorus as the other members of the inn raised both their voices and arms in defiance. From the windows the defenders fired bolts to cover their friend while the young mercenaries fell in behind her. They engaged  the swordsmen who had helped take down Boran while Miriana battled their commander. From the darkness the two archers began to loose their own arrows with near impossible speed and accuracy. The hearths residents returned fire but without a clear target they could only shoot blindly into the darkness and hope to curb the stream of missiles that came as if from half a dozen rather than two. 

As the chaos erupted those not engaged fell back to the safety of the brothel. After lending their hand to help guide the shocked Megra to safety Cas ducked back behind one of the large posts of the covered porch shouting for Miriana to join the retreat. 

“She won’t listen,” Adrian said, having freed his hands and ducked further behind the stairs to avoid becoming a target. “And she won’t win,” he added, looking toward the demon with a grim expression. 

“Then someone has to help her,” they said, their voice cracking. In the melee one of the pride members had already gotten the better of his opponent and seemed poised to set his sights on the red haired adventurer.  Cas began to lean from behind the post as if preparing to make a charge of their own before Adrian sprung from his own cover and forced them back into safety.

“Someone has to…” Cas repeated again their eyes locking onto the gunman. Those portals like dark smoke gave some comfort even as their vision began to blur with tears. “Help her,” they said. “Help her please…”

Adrian stared back silent, his expression unchanged and stoic. The only acknowledgment he offered was when he reached out to gently wipe away a tear that had begun to roll down Cas’s soft cheek. Adrian then produced the small bottle he’d hidden in his bindings. Popping off the top he raised the tiny tincture above his head before tossing the dropper away and pouring the entirety of the contents into his open eyes. Cas watched as the gunman's pupils began to expand, filling the iris with a pitch black hole. 

To Adrian the world seemed to slow and brighten. His mind began to process images at a quickened pace and his dilated pupils caught even the smallest hint of light. Peaking around the pillar he could now see the two archers in the darkness shifting between cover before firing several quick shots. Cover, one, two, three, cover, one, two, three. If he timed it right he could make the distance before they could focus on him. It would be tight and once he reached Laoise there would be little he could do. While he was a decent pugilist and a fine enough knife fighter he knew he wouldn’t last long in a sword fight. His best bet would be to try and get that pistol away from Laoise. Deciding it was a sound enough plan he readied the stolen dagger and waited for his opening in the archers pattern.

“I’ll buy some time, but I need my weapons,” he said, casting an eye to the demon who nodded in acknowledgment. They sprung to their feet ready to move at Adrian’s signal. 

“I’ll be quick,” they promised before adding softly, “be careful.”

“You too,” Adrian said before springing from his hiding place as the archers finished their volley. Cas followed suit a split second later diving through the small crack in the door and hitting the floor with a hard thud. Ignoring the pain they scrambled to their feet and sprinted toward the armory with a singular focus. 

*

Even using her off hand Miriana put on a good showing. Had she been healthy and of sound mind it might have been hard to say who might have won her duel with the Lioness. But in her current condition the best she could do was hold her own as Laoise toyed and tormented her. She struck the adventurer with small snapping cuts and blows from the flat of her sword. None of them were aimed to end the fight and instead served to satiate that dark part of Laoise that thrived on pain and domination. She had just delivered a sharp punch to Miriana's jaw and was about to deliver the final blow when Adrian intervened. 

Throwing the blade toward the ground he forced the Lioness to abandon her coup de grace and retreat a step as the dagger buried into the ground with a thunk. She tried to ready her weapon against the man but was forced to address a new attack from Miriana. This gave the gunman time to collect the dagger and cover the last few steps.  Rather than try and drive the blade home Adrian instead shot out with his free hand, the tips of his fingers brushing briefly against the butt of the ornate pistol. 

The lioness had noticed what was happening just in time and turned quickly to draw the weapon away from Adrian's grasp. Laoise soon found herself on her back foot unable to mount an offence as her focus split between avoiding the cut of Miriana's blade and retaining the pistol. More than once she nearly caught the gunman but with his reflexes bolstered by whatever had been in the vial he narrowly avoided the strikes each time.

After one failed attack Adrian ducked low collecting a handful of dirt which he threw upward behind the cover of Laoises helmet. Inside the metal confines the dust plumed blinding and choking the lioness.  In a moment of desperation she swung the weapon in wide wild circles forcing back her opponents and giving her a moment to throw off her helmet and clear her vision.  

No sooner could she see, Adrian feigned a grab for the pistol and when Laoise attempted to swat it away he suddenly changed course and delivered a stiff punch onto the tip of the woman's nose. In an instant her vision blurred and blood began to run thick down her lips and chin. Had it been any other warrior the blow could well have been the beginning of the end, but Laoise had earned the title of Lioness not for luck of birth but for martial prowess. 

With a roar she swung the sword toward the gunman while simultaneously catching Miriana’s blade with her gloved hand. This blow came closer than any so far and forced Adrian back further than before. As he reeled he caught sight of one of the other knights bearing down on him. Forced to react he stepped back again and feigned a motion as if reaching for a hidden weapon. For a moment reason left the knight, and remembering the brutality of their first encounter he recoiled slightly allowing Adrian to bind the sword with the crossguard of the dagger and push it away. He followed up with a sharp strike to the swordman’s throat with the edge of his hand before plunging the dagger through one of the small slits in the helmet's visor. 

The blade didn’t kill the man but it found purchase in something and refused to be retracted even as the knight fell away with a shout. Adrian abandoned the weapon then abandoned the field as one of his roving eyes saw the archers preparing a volley just for him. Scrambling like a chased fox he took cover behind a small ornate boulder at the edge of the road. One arrow bounced off the rock and gave a small cut across his scalp when one of the archers saw the smallest bit of hair sticking up over the top. 

The gunman compressed himself even further as he tried to survey the field. Things weren’t looking good. Alone Miriana was no match for the Lioness who batted away her strikes and attacked with a newfound ferocity. Additionally the mercenaries had already met their end. From what Adrian could at least two were dead and while the third appeared to have some life in him it was doubtful he would last long without attention. 

Then there was of course the gunman's own condition to be worried about. While he was for the most part uninjured he was now pinned down without any way to defend himself. A fact already noticed but the remaining swordsmen who had begun to make their way toward the cowering sharpshooter. They were slowed only by the crossbow fire from the windows of the inn which, without guidance or discipline came sporadically and was easily addressed by the professional warriors. 

In less than a minute he would be dead, as would Miriana. The rest of the inn would likely follow suit soon after when Laoise gave the order to have the place burned. All Adrian could do was watch the door of the inn and hope the demon was as fast as they looked.