Shadowwalker - Under Review For Now

15. Ambush

Both pairs of eyes widened, and Venarius immediately made wild silencing motions.

Raven hesitated, then nodded. She realised it was unlikely he recognised her, and the best course of action was to first discover who the mysterious figure up ahead was, and what he was waiting for, and then she'd figure out what to do with the escapee.

The two of them huddled closer together, an air of distrust and wariness surrounding them, and peered through gaps in the crates. They crouched on the slightly damp, grubby cobblestones, the cold slowly but surely seeping in, through their clothes, skin, and right down to their bones. It was an experience neither of them desired to repeat, but they bared it. Begrudgingly so. Their breath mingled,  constantly creating the smallest of clouds which evaporated as soon as it came to be. It was an oddly intimate moment, which made Venarius shift uncomfortably. Raven shot him a dark look, wordlessly telling him to 'for pity's sake, stop moving!', which he then did.

After what seemed like an eternity, something finally happened. The would-be assassin nudged her. A longboat, about one and a half horses long, silently slid into the harbour.

On it, 2 dark figures stood up, and clambered onto the docks. The first, original figure which had been patiently waiting did nothing to assist them. His voice was soft and husky, with dangerous undertones.

"You're late,"  he stated.

The two figures bobbed up and down, and made a series of rapid motions with their hands. The boy next to her drew a sharp breath. "Dead men tell no tales."  His warm breath fanned over her as he spoke, sending chills down her spine. "I'm only joking," he then added. Raven raised her eyebrow, but within half a moment her eyes widened as she realised he was translating for her. She mentally smiled. Maybe it wasn't so bad that he escaped...

The stranger up ahead took a step back, and shifted his stance, casually showing off a large, jewelled dagger, and drew a small, deadly crossbow from somewhere they couldn't quite see. The slight green-glowing glint told its observers that a poison curse had been placed upon it. He jerked it back, motioning towards something they couldn't see. "

Place the goods inside the carriage, and then begone. The payment is two coins less than normal, for the added risk you forced me to take by waiting out here." 

The two figures started waving about in protest, but the figure quickly silenced them. "If you are late once more,"  he threatened, "Our little... 'arrangement', as we call it, will come to a halt."

The two figures turned towards each other, and started communication so quickly, their hands became a blur for the two hidden onlookers.

"Are you prepared to proceed? My.... patience is running out."

The two turned to face him, nodded, and then got to work. The left one, Raven noticed, had a slight limp. And was female. Then, taking a closer look at the one on the right, her eyes narrowed when she saw that they were both women. 'Interesting,'  she thought to herself, as an idea as to their identities started to form inside her mind.

The original figure cast one last glance about, and then walked off. In the mean time, the limping one hopped back down onto the boat, and went ahead with stacking small, oddly shaped parcels onto the dock. The other one filled her arms with the goods, and began walking towards their audience. Suddenly, a flash of clarity overcame her the coin dropped, she knew for certain who the two young ladies were.

'And this is the moment where the fun finally begins.

Raven grinned, and nudged Venarius. She glanced at him, and was shocked to see how pale he looked. 'He's afraid,'  she realised uneasily. 'I wonder why...' 

She shook her head, brushing the thoughts away, and prepared herself.

She leaned on hands and feet, her palms nor her heels touching the ground as she stood. In doing so, Venarius noted that she vaguely resembled a cat. He rolled his eyes, and grabbed two of his knives, which he then loosely held in his hands.

The silent smuggler was almost upon them. Ten feet away.... Five... Three... The moment she was deemed close enough, Raven pounced.

The girl dropped everything she was carrying as Raven covered her mouth with one hand, and tried to pin her down. They both rolled into the shadows, struggling for control, neither one of them seeming to be able to gain the upper hand.

Raven realised the girl looked younger than she was, probably only sixteen summers old. However, this didn't put her off. The girl licked Raven's hand, in an attempt to get her to let go, and when that didn't work she tried to bite. Alas it was to no avail, as Raven slowly but surely managed to get her to lie still, when, finally, Raven was straddling her, doing her best to hold both her wrists with her free hand but barely managing to do so as the teen tried to buck her off.

Venarius approached them slowly.

"Why are you covering her mouth?" he asked. 

"Because only one of them is mute," she hissed, "now shut up and give me a hand, will you Nequitios?" His eyes widened, and a lock of hair promptly fell into them. He brushed it out of the way. 

"H-how do you know my name?" he asked, uncertain. A cold shiver ran down his spine that, despite the chill, had little to do with the weather.

"That's a story," she paused to try and maintain her balance atop the girl who was still trying to wriggle her way out from under her, "For another time. Now, are you going to help me or not? The other one will start worrying where she is and besides, I'm not convinced their client has gone very far." He nodded, and, reluctantly, put his knives away.

Instead of using his knives, he withdrew a length of rope, and started to tie her wrists together.

"Don't tie them above her head, you idiot," Raven scolded.

"Well, flip her over then!" Venarius retorted.

"I will!" she bit back. Then she felt slightly embarrassed, and wasn't sure why....

The girl watched their exchange with a fearful expression on her face.

Raven sighed.

"Hurry up, we're running out of-" 

Out of nowhere, a cold, sharp blade was pressed against her throat. 

"I thought I saw someone behind those crates. And what do you know? It's a wretched little bird, pecking her beak there where it doesn't belong..."