Eight Intertwined

169 - Gareth

The two thieves at Gareth's side were the first to strike, their blades glinting in the limited light of the cave. Therion raised his own dagger to block one of their attacks, and beside him, he saw Olberic parry one of the opening blows too. The thieves were sent staggering backward moments later, and Primrose greeted them with an explosion of dark magic. The brigands were too stunned to realize what was happening for a split second, and that was all it took for Alfyn and H'aanit to sneak up behind them with their axes at the ready. The thieves barely had the mind to turn around and counter the attacks, but it had come at a price, and they were both left off balance. 

Cyrus was happy to solve that problem for them, casting an ice spell that rushed toward the pair from behind. The thieves were left trapped between Alfyn and H'aanit and the ice wall with no other means of escape. Ophilia brought down a column of light that exploded in between the two thieves, giving Alfyn and H'aanit the chance to try and get in their final blows. Alfyn went to hit his target with the base of his axe to knock him unconscious, but the thief managed to worm out of the way at the last second. 

In doing so, he ran straight into Tressa. She cast a powerful wind spell that seemed to shake the cave itself, and the thief staggered away as the tempest tore at his clothing and skin. The thief tried to rush toward Tressa to stab her spear out of her hand, but she was ready for him, and she twisted her lance around to try and force him to drop his sword. The thief maintained his grip, but it came at a price, and he wasn't prepared for a slash to the shoulder from Olberic. The thief screamed in pain before retreating to try and face both of them. 

The other thief, meanwhile, was still pinned in by H'aanit. Linde lunged forward to try and get in a bite or two, and the thief tried to slash his blade at her. Linde avoided it with expert speed before clamping her jaws around the man's ankle. He screamed and sliced wildly to cut Linde away from him, but the snow leopard jumped backward just before his blade could make contact. H'aanit raised her axe and brought it down in a single swift motion, and while it didn't knock the thief unconscious, it came close, and he was left stumbling with one hand pressed against his temple. Blood was flowing down his cheek, but the thief barely had the chance to process it before another blast of light from Ophilia pursued him. The light opened a gap in the ice wall behind him, and the thief jumped through it, but everyone already knew he wouldn't be able to get away from the battle, at least not for long. 

Therion dashed past the thief and toward Gareth. The closer he got, the clearer the similarities between him and his target became. Therion couldn't decide if it was flattering or insulting that Darius had opted for someone who could have passed for his clone to replace him. Darius had sought someone who would agree to anything and everything he had to say, and in doing so, he had wound up with someone who perfectly matched the hole left behind by the person he had betrayed the most. Therion would prove how poor of a decision he had made though. It felt like all he had left. 

Gareth carried himself defensively, always prepared for a knife to soar for his head. Maybe he had been taught that trick by Darius. It wouldn't have been intentional since Darius had always chosen to fight with all the force in the world, never backing down even in situations when he really should have. Gareth, on the other hand, knew how to keep himself safe in a fight. Therion wondered if perhaps he had been forced to exercise his defensive maneuvers against Darius. Therion had certainly fought with Darius his fair share, but he hadn't ever thought to strike back. That was one point in Gareth's favor, he supposed, but Therion wished he didn't need to keep score at all. 

Therion stabbed quickly at the main weak point he could see in Gareth's defenses just beneath the man's chest. He wasn't aiming for the kill, at least not yet, so he swung his dagger around and hit Gareth with the hilt of the blade instead. As Therion had hoped he would, Gareth staggered backward with a wheeze. He had just barely been distracted enough for Therion to get what he had come for, and that was all he needed. Therion swept his leg low to try and knock Gareth off his feet, but Gareth was ready for it and jumped over the attack. He brought his blades down over Therion's head, but the thief was ready for him, and he threw up his own dagger to try and fend the swords off. Gareth was strong, and he would overpower Therion soon even if only because he had two weapons where Therion was only using one. Luckily, Therion wasn't above playing a bit dirty, and he charged his free hand with a fire spell before striking Gareth exactly where he had hit him with his dagger's hilt moments prior.