Merbella

Hunted (Pascal and Merbella)

As the girl asked why he was being chased Luka opened his eyes, lifting his head slightly to look at her as a puzzled expression crossed his face. He sat up and moved to lie on his stomach instead; however his attention wasn’t on her, rather on Endi as the small cat crept forward towards the girl cautiously, keeping low to the ground as if it were stalking prey. She stopped just out of the girl’s reach, somewhere she deemed ‘safe enough’ and raised her head slightly, sniffing lightly. Luka was at a loss for words as he watched the strange behaviour from his friend.

“Odd,” he commented instead, completely ignoring the girl’s question. Whilst he didn’t think it to be an unreasonable one, it was also one he was not going to answer. His life was his business, he didn’t ask her about hers, but at the same time this was mostly because he didn’t care. He didn’t plan to have her with him for very long. She’d no doubt prove a hindrance, slow him down. The overall bottom line was he couldn’t allow himself to get attached. “She’s never acted that way before towards… well anyone… except me of course.”

Then again he’d never really allowed himself to become so relaxed around another person either, now that he thought about it. Maybe she was simply picking up on that and following in suit. He wasn’t sure really. This was new territory, for the both of them. Still, it didn’t alter the new plan, which was only slightly different from the old one. There was a small town that was a few days travel from here, he’d escort her there and then they’d part ways. Whilst he knew it couldn’t make up for the destruction he’d brought to her life it was certainly better than leaving her back there at the guard’s mercy or leaving her out here to fend for herself.

The woods were no safer than anywhere else these days for people. Wild animals prowled, along with bandits. It didn’t matter what species you were, something always seemed to be after you. It wasn’t going to be an easy few days, he was aware of this. Travelling in silence was more difficult when someone was asking you questions. More awkward too. Sighing softly the boy let his eyes close again. “We’ll get moving again once everything is dry, no point gallivanting through the woods whilst we’re both sopping wet.” He said softly as Endi continued her distanced observation of the girl and her behaviour.

Hunted (Pascal and Merbella)

(This will probably be my last post for a while because I have work soon)

It was a relief when she told him she could swim, meant less hassle. However when she asked if she’d be going first he shook his head. “Not this time.” The boy said as he took a small step backwards before launching himself out and into the water. The cool, fresh water quickly closed in around him and Luka kicked back to the surface, taking in a breath as he swam towards the shore, checking over his shoulder as he heard a splash from behind him. However, as promised, the girl was able to make her way to an area where she could stand though maybe her form was a little lacking.

Finally allowing himself to relax Luka let his body begin to succumb to exhaustion. He pulled off his boots, tipping out the water from each, laying them on the rocks and pulling off his shirt so that it could dry out too the boy moved to the grassy area and lay down on his back, letting his eyes close. It had been clean enough to get rid of a lot of the dirt, sweat and gunk but he wasn’t about to drink it any time soon. He wasn’t sleeping, just finally taking a few moments to rest. However that didn’t last very long as he suddenly sat up, looking over his shoulder as something darted out of the forest towards him, jumping into the boy’s lap and nuzzling against him.

“Hey! Endi!” He said happily as he took hold of the small blue cat from earlier and stroked it. It was probably the first time the girl would have seen him display any true form of happiness. “I was wondering when you’d show up.” The creature looked up at him and dropped something shiny in his lap, Luka picking it up and inspecting the silver coin before smiling back down at the creature. “Thank you.” He said softly to it, receiving a small noise in return before he allowed himself to lie back on the grass, tucking the coin back in his pocket.

The sun was bright and the skies clear which meant there was little chance for rain, which would be a nice. Lying there on the ground it was clear the boy had experienced many kinds of wounds like the one on his side before, with many scars crisscrossing along his chest and torso, some small, obviously more puncture wounds from arrows or daggers and some longer, slices from swords maybe. In all honestly he didn’t remember the source of most of them. As he lay there, clearly enjoying the sun on his skin the small cat, Endi as he had called it, sauntered its way over to the girl, watching her from a distance with big, curious eyes.

She was a bit of a mystery in herself, really. He hadn't asked her for help. She knew the consequences yet she had patched him up when all he had asked for was for her to let him hide there until he could move. It made no sense to him. Went against everything he believed and he was finding it hard to wrap his head around it, so decided instead to just let it go. The more he thought about it the more it was going to bug him. A better topic would be his next course of action.

(Soul Hunter & Merbella)

His breath felt hot, burning his lungs with each sharp inhale as feet flew across the ground, almost silent as he ran through the crowd. Many cries of outrage could be heard in his wake as Luka barged through people, knocking some to the ground in his haste. But there was no time to stop and offer an apology or help. Even further back his keen ears angry shouts to move and a clanking of metal as guard weapons clanged against other pieces of their gear. They were far enough behind that he couldn’t see them if he looked back, but close enough they were able to follow the trail of confusion and chaos the boy left behind him.

His deep, sharp, blue eyes scanned the buildings rushing past him as his feet practically flew across the ground, his speed hindered only by the people in his way. There were few gaps in the crowd, no alleyways in sight. No place to escape. The bright noon sun was beaming down upon him, sweat dripping from every pore in his body as pain continued to radiate from his side. He couldn’t, or perhaps didn’t want to, think about how long he had been running. Suddenly his eyes widened with surprise as up ahead of him he saw a small gap in the crow, not much but just enough to offer a small chance at maybe a rest.

Quickly the boy darted through the gap that led to a small building, probably a shop, he suspected. Bursting through the door he slammed it behind, breathing heavily his eyes scanned the room he had just entered before they landed on a young woman and they widened in fright. With lightning fast movements he dashed forwards and took a hold of her upper arm in one hand and placed the other over her mouth to stop her from crying out.

“Please,” he managed to gasp out between ragged breaths. “Just… be quiet. I’m not… not going to hurt you.” His eyes flickered to the side for a moment, towards the door and he fell totally silent, holding his breath despite the burning urgency in his lungs as if he was listening to something. However there was nothing to be heard outside, just the usual hustle and bustle of the city. However after a minute or so he seemed satisfied with whatever he was waiting for and took a long gasp for air before returning his attention to the girl before him, which he now realised he was intimately close to, their bodies practically touching in places.

“I’m going to move my hand away.” He said softly, searching her eyes for some kind of sign as he slowly peeled his hand. “Please… don’t scream.” Releasing her and taking a few steps away Luka stood rigidly, his entire body tense like a deer that sensed danger and was ready to flee at a moment’s notice. All it took was one shout, one call for help and people would hear and with the guards so close they would be upon them within minutes. There would be little chance for escape.

(Soul Hunter & Merbella)

I am awful at naming RP's so you'll have to forgive me.

Name: Luka
Age: 22
Appearance: Fairly average height with a very lean, athletic body, not overly muscly and heavily tanned. Short, slightly curly medium brown hair and intense butterfly blue eyes. (Can never really find a picture I like of him so I have to just describe him (which I am not very good at sorry))

Hunted (Pascal and Merbella)

Luka stood there silently as he listened to the sounds around him, he knelt down and felt the water trickling past his fingers before holding them up in the air and even sniffed the air a few times for good measure. He could hear the girl stumbling along in the dark and realised she was having a hard time seeing, which he’d partially forgotten about so he stopped and went back slightly, reaching out in confidence and taking her hand, prompting her to hold on his shirt, it would be too awkward to try and lead her around in the dark by the wrist again.

“No doubt they’ll have the city’s borders under guard as well. There won’t be escaping above ground. This way.” He said as he began leading her through the pipes with an unusual confidence, barely pausing whenever they came to a point where the pipes led off in different direction. He seemed to know exactly where he was going. Even so the pair was forced to crawl through the foul smelling darkness for over half an hour, Luka never allowing for a break, before light could finally be seen from somewhere up ahead. It was only small at first, a small distinction against the darkness but it quickly grew.

When they turned the next corner the light hit them full on and the exit lay before them. Luka approached it cautiously. The pipe let out to a large lake surrounded by a small, stony riverbank which eventually gave way to a layer of grass which then transformed into large trees, an entire forest spreading out before them. Luka stopped suddenly at the edge of the pipe, holding his arm out to stop the girl as he turned to her, one eyebrow raised slightly. “You can swim right?” He asked as he looked back down over the lip of the pipe.

It was a fair drop, a couple of metres but the water was deep. That was the part he was worried about. Swimming was nothing for him, but he was also aware many people couldn’t as he had used rivers to escape pursuers many time. However most, having grown up within cities never developed a need for it. He also knew the risk a drowning person could present to him if he tried to help them, panic flooding their system as they tried to climb on top of him to keep themselves above water. It seemed cruel to bring her out here, save her from certain death in there, only to let her drown.

Wild (whitebird21 and Merbella)

His breath felt hot, burning his lungs with each sharp inhale as feet flew across the ground, almost silent as he ran through the crowd. Many cries of outrage could be heard in his wake as Luka barged through people, knocking some to the ground in his haste. But there was no time to stop and offer an apology or help. Even further back his keen ears angry shouts to move and a clanking of metal as guard weapons clanged against other pieces of their gear. They were far enough behind that he couldn’t see them if he looked back, but close enough they were able to follow the trail of confusion and chaos the boy left behind him.

His deep, sharp, blue eyes scanned the buildings rushing past him as his feet practically flew across the ground, his speed hindered only by the people in his way. There were few gaps in the crowd, no alleyways in sight. No place to escape. The bright noon sun was beaming down upon him, sweat dripping from every pore in his body as pain continued to radiate from his side. He couldn’t, or perhaps didn’t want to, think about how long he had been running. Suddenly his eyes widened with surprise as up ahead of him he saw a small gap in the crow, not much but just enough to offer a small chance at maybe a rest.

Quickly the boy darted through the gap that led to a small building, probably a shop, he suspected. Bursting through the door he slammed it behind, breathing heavily his eyes scanned the room he had just entered before they landed on a young woman and they widened in fright. With lightning fast movements he dashed forwards and took a hold of her upper arm in one hand, which had a strange, wet feeling on it and placed the other over her mouth to stop her from crying out.

“Please,” he managed to gasp out between ragged breaths. “Just… be quiet. I’m not… not going to hurt you.” His eyes flickered to the side for a moment, towards the door and he fell totally silent, holding his breath despite the burning urgency in his lungs as if he was listening to something. However there was nothing to be heard outside, just the usual hustle and bustle of the city. However after a minute or so he seemed satisfied with whatever he was waiting for and took a long gasp for air before returning his attention to the girl before him, which he now realised he was intimately close to, their bodies practically touching in places.

“I’m going to move my hand away.” He said softly, searching her eyes for some kind of sign as he slowly peeled his hand. “Please… don’t scream.” Releasing her and taking a few steps away Luka stood rigidly, his entire body tense like a deer that sensed danger and was ready to flee at a moment’s notice. All it took was one shout, one call for help and people would hear and with the guards so close they would be upon them within minutes. There would be little chance for escape.

Wild (whitebird21 and Merbella)

Name: Luka
Age: 21
Appearance: Fairly average height with a very lean, athletic body, not overly muscly and heavily tanned. Short, slightly curly medium brown hair and intense butterfly blue eyes. (Can never really find a picture I like of him so I have to just describe him (which I am not very good at sorry))

Hunted (Pascal and Merbella)

Luka waited patiently for the girl to collect anything she thought she’d need and he moved over to the door, looking out cautiously. That guard wasn’t getting back up any time soon. The street wasn’t as crowded as before, which was good. It was still daylight though, which was less than desirable. And guards were busting through doors left right and centre, which was a problem. He turned to the girl as she turned the lock and looked at her seriously. “Are you?” He questioned in return as he walked over to her and took her gently by the wrist. “Try to keep up.”

He opened the door and suddenly pulled the girl close. They were looking for him, but they also weren’t expecting him to be with another person or walk out into broad daylight. He knew that whilst they were undetected they’d draw much less attention if they just tried to act like everyone else. Running off would have just alerted people to his presence quicker. However they seemed to have a fairly strong idea of where he was; Luka saw both ends of the street blocked off by guards, inspecting everyone who passed and many were patrolling the streets.

He froze, not really out of fear but just as he took in the surroundings, trying to gauge just where he could go. Luka suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder and his entire body tensed. “Excuse me, sir but have you-” However he was cut off before he could finish his question as Luka spun around, momentarily letting go of the girl at his side as he swiped the guars feet out from underneath him, sending him falling to the ground, dazed as his head hit the cobblestone. Cries of fear and alarm erupted around them and the boy cursed softly, grabbing onto the girl’s wrist again.

“Let’s go.” He said as he took off running at an alarming pace. His leanness suddenly became very reasonable, the muscles conditioned to running for a long time at speeds not usually sustained by normal people. Even behind him he could feel the girl lagging, kept up only by his force pulling her along. Guards seemed to be popping up out of nowhere, causing him to quickly change the direction he was going. Still, he was aware he was strapped. There was no escape from either end of the street. He stopped suddenly, listening to the sounds around him when he heard it again.

Turning he took off in another seemingly random direction, a dog suddenly appearing beside them, running along and barking at them before it turned and ran back the way they had just come. Luke suddenly took a turn down a very narrow alleyway, leading the girl to the very edge as he knelt down and lifted up a heavy, round disk covering the ground, leading to the sewers. “After you,” the boy said as he moved aside and practically pushed the girl in, jumping down after and replacing the lid, sealing them into the darkness.

On the Hunt (thepeacefulfallen and Merbella)

Luke looked up as he offered to help him, distrust and a lot of fear entering those eyes. It made no sense. No sense at all for her to be helping him and certainly went against everything he’d let himself believe to be true about people of the public. However he was not stupid either. The thought that he could overpower her was still in his mind if she tried anything, and he was fairly certain his reflexes and speed were enough to beat her to the door if she made a break for it to try and lock him in or try and alert someone of his presence.

At least he hoped. In this state however he was beginning to doubt his abilities, his thought process was moving a lot slower than it usually did. Suddenly the girl was at the door to the back room stating that she didn’t want to deal with a dead body or blood on her floor as she moved to close the blinds and lock the door. She was smart, it seemed. Then again the idea of being ladled a wanted criminal was generally a strong incentive and slowly he rose to his feet to follow her.

If she tried to attack him then he could fight her off and he’d run again, like he always ended up doing. He moved to sit on the space provided for him and took a long breath in, wincing as he eventually peeled back his shirt, lifting it slightly to reveal a fairly significant puncture wound to his side as if he’d been stabbed by something, fresh red blood oozing out. However it didn’t look like a fresh wound, at least a day or so old that just hadn't had time enough to heal.

“Do what you must.” He said begrudgingly, turning his head away, as if his pride was preventing him from being thankful when he should be, like he didn’t want to admit he needed help. And in truth he didn’t. He didn’t want to accept that he needed help, was still adamant even in his mind that he would be fine even without her. And he was scared. Everything in his body indicated it, tenseness, shaking, though luckily for him this could also be associated with shock or pain so she may not realise. However he was also aware that medical attention could help him in the long run, which was always the end goal; the long run. He would have been stupid to refuse it.

Hunted (Pascal and Merbella)

Luka took a few deep breaths, willing his body to relax and prepare itself. He was going to have to fight and it was going to hurt. With nothing that would really provide a suitable weapon he’d have to just go hand to hand with the guard. Judging by the noises he could hear from the other room they were behind the counter, which wouldn’t give him much space for anything. The noises in the other room were beginning to worry him, reminding him he didn’t have as much time as he’d like to form a plan of attack.

Then again, he was rarely given the time he’d like to do that. So in that sense, this was exactly like every other conflict with these people he’d had. Getting a quick lay out of the shop in his mind the boy quick turned before he let the distraction outside drag on too long and stepped out into the other room. “Hey!” He called loudly. Originally the sound of just an angry sounding male voice caused the guard to jerk back, probably thinking he was the owner or perhaps a friend of the girl. However once he realised what he was truly looking at, his face only grew in surprise.

“Looking for me?” Luka asked, his face twisting into a slightly scary smile. The guard, on the other hand, looked stunned. No doubt he hadn't actually been expecting to find their quarry here. Shifting his stance very slightly Luke raised his arms defensively. “Well? Come on then,” he baited as the guard stumbled out from behind the counter as he reached for his sword which, in reality, was not the wisest weapon for close combat indoors. The sword caught, whether that was from neglect of the gear or the guard’s fear Luka didn’t care.

Once again displaying that almost inhuman speed he had shown earlier he darted forwards, swinging his arm around and connecting a full powered punch to the guard’s temple before he could react, causing him to drop to the ground. The boy winced slightly, holding his side, once again breathing a little heavily as he looked up at the girl. “He’s not dead.” He assured her. “But…” His eyes cast down slightly, becoming shadowed by his hair. “You can’t stay here anymore.” His voice was quiet, almost barely audible.

He looked back up at her once more as he gestured to the guard. “These guys have been on my tail for… a long time. Willing or not they’ll think you helped me now and they don’t like people who aid criminals.” There was sorrow mixed in with hatred in the boy’s voice and eye now. “If nothing else this one will want to ensure you never cause him trouble about that incident before. I… I am sorry. But you need to come with me. Now. Stay here and you’ll only face death… or worse.” And he knew very well, there were things far worse than death.