Knowing now that the only thing that mattered was catching up with her, his love, whichever of the two it might be, Raphael leapt off the bed and pulled on his leathers and his boots, brushing his dark hair from his eyes as he hurried out of the room, not bothering to lock the door behind him. Raph flew down the stairs, lacking the usual silent grace he carried in his efforts to make up for lost time. Reaching the bottom, he made for a hasty exit from the tavern, suspecting to find Calia in one of the forest locations within the Mystical Forest that she often retreated to when she needed some �quiet time.� But before he could reach the doors, the bartender�s voice stopped Raphael in his tracks. There was panic in the voice; concern and worry.

�Raphael! Raph!�

Slowly and calmly, the dark haired human turned back around and walked with a purpose towards the bar. He gave a cool nod to the bartender, but it was not returned. Silently Raphael wondered why the man looked so nervous and frightened.

�They�ve got her, Raph! They�ve� they�ve got her! I tried to� but��

The message wasn�t coming out all too clearly, but Raphael was already beginning to piece together a jigsaw in his head. Bringing both hands to rest on the table, he lowered his eyes a moment, trailing his finger along the surface, then looked back to the flushed bartender.

�Wha� is it? Who�s got who?�

�Calia� they� they were all in black, nasty looking types��

Raph took a deep breath, trying not to let his shock and worry appear obvious on his face and in his eyes. He gave the bartender a nod of appreciation and then turned around and walked now to the door he had been intending to use a moment ago. He knew that if the assassins had got Calia, there was no chance that the bartender would know where they had taken her; he knew from experience that the bartender�s eyes were all too easily deceived. The moment the tavern door closed behind Raph, he burst into a sprint in the direction of the town gates. To any bystanders it might have appeared he was running blindly, but in truth his keen eyes were examining every foot of ground he covered, watching for tracks, prints or anything that might set him on a path to Calia. The instincts he had honed during his days among the assassin ranks did not fail him; there was a definite trail. The killers may have left no tracks themselves, but their flailing captive certainly had.

-

Calia had given way to the mind within, for there were instincts in the conscience of the deceased Keilia that would keep them both alive. It was these instincts now that were in full motion, as the form of the dark-haired elf dodged and weaved to avoid the blades and limbs that surrounded her, each one swung with one intent; the intent to kill. Keilia felt the adrenalin pumping through her veins, the heat of battle, something she had not felt in so long. Yet she knew from the moment the assassins surrounded her that something was amiss. A weapon. Though the body she now used was that of a monk, the mind knew not how to use such a body in that way. The eyes of a shadowed assassin flashed before her for a moment, followed shortly by the figure�s dagger.

Calia took a side step, grabbing the arm under her own. Keilia took the dagger from the fist, wrenching it out of tight fingers. Calia delivered the hip toss, slamming the cloaked body to the ground. Keilia put the dagger between his head, ending his life there and then.

But this was a small victory, for even as one assassin fell limp to the floor, two more moved in for their attempt on her life. The flat of a leather boot collided with the elven woman�s face and she staggered backwards, giving a cry of surprise. Her back hit something; another assassin, who landed a stiff fist between her shoulder blades. To her sides there were two more, dark forms each with only one thing on their minds; her pain. �This was a mistake,� Calia told herself, but even as she did she heard the voice within her head retort. �Not whilst Raph means everything to me.� She grit her teeth and narrowly blocked the shuriken with her dagger as it whizzed close to her pointed ear.

�I�m surrounded,� she thought aloud, much to the delight of several of the foes around her. Then came the reply she had somewhat anticipated. �Over the heads.� Calia pondered the words a moment as they flowed through her mind. �What?� Keilia smiled, and Calia was unable to stop the smile. �I said �over the heads.� You so deaf you can�t even hear yourself think?�

Before Calia knew what she was doing she ran forward and leapt, pressing the front of her foot into the assassin�s chest. The assassin gave a groan and, as expected, grabbed the foot that was pushing into his ribcage. This acted as enough leverage for the lithe elven form to flip over the assassin�s head, landing on the outside of the circle that had surrounded her. A roundhouse kick sent the figure who had unwillingly been the escape route now crashing to the ground, about as conscious as the stone that he hit.

Taking a deep breath, Keilia looked to the hill not far from the clearing she now stood in; the hill that marked her escape from her place of captivity; then she turned back to the assassins. �They must go, first�. Every� single� one of them.� Keilia took the step towards her foes as they crouched into low positions, ready to strike. Calia didn�t allow it; turning around she fled from the fight, making hastily for the exit. �You can�t leave them for Raph�� she heard Keilia protest. �We�ll be no good to him dead.� She ran towards the hill, to her escape, but a hand from the shadows of a tree grabbed her wrist and with shimmering emerald eyes she noticed the figure, large and hooded. Dark eyes, shroud in shadow, met hers.

�Going somewhere?�

But the question was rhetorical, for no answer was expected from the slender elven woman. Instead, the dark figure struck her across the face, dropping her like lead to the grass. Her shrill cry echoed around the forest, and it brought sneers to more than one face.

�No more of this. Tie her up.�

Without need of second bidding the assassins; those who were not too injured from her attempted escape; leapt onto her, and she felt strong hands binding hers. �Should have attacked when the chance was there,� she spoke aloud, replying to herself in an angered tone. �Shut up.�

-

Raph arrived at the forest edge sooner than even he had expected, having made good time once he found a clear enough track. A small flowing river had caused a problem, but he had soon managed to pick the trail back up upon sighting some broken bracken. As he moved amongst the trees, silent as the almost still night winds around him, Raphael heard something. A cry of pain somewhere in the distance; a female voice; Calia�s voice. With time only for one blink of surprise, the ex-assassin broke into a sprint.