To Hell and Back [Private, Ashura, Elizabeth]

Surely the days would be easier now that she were back?

But the crippling silence, what she saw around her, Skylar highly doubted that was true. Her plans were simple enough, but actually being able to do what was needed was a true challenge to them both. After instructing Elizabeth to walk ahead of herself, and wait for her just near the edge of the alleyway, telling her not to look back at Sky. There, there were two other pathways that connected to the alley they were in, meaning that the assassin could get out... But at the same time, meaning that she couldn't really do much to stop Skylar from at least seeing her. She kept her own axe hidden underneath her feathered arms from other prying eyes as she continued to force herself to keep trying. Trying for what?

A simple vantage point. Something. Anything. Ashura wasn't going to come out easily, or if she did, Skylar was going to have to be in a position where she wasn't going to be seen instantly, but could easily get to Elizabeth and at least prevent Ashura from killing her. That was one of her tasks, after all.

Instead, Skylar adjusted her shoulders, before Elizabeth finally came to a stop. . . But thankfully, Skylar, from where she was, was concealed enough in the darkness for Ashura not to know she was there. And, hopefully, that was enough to ensure that she would try and strike Elizabeth.

But not without Skylar seeing and being able to act upon it.

---

@Ashura @Elizabeth

Le Familiar Axery

Out of the corner of her eyes, something moved. It was a flicker of cloth, clothing, but not something which she could see easily. However what scared the living daylights out of her was where it was. As it so happened to be, the place the person decided to sit was almost around the corner to Skylar, to her right and around the edge of the building. Casually, she exhaled just a little more. For a few moments, her heart seized up.

Memories of the blood splattered man came to her. His body cleaved almost in half.

At that, she almost froze. But quickly, she shoved it down, forcing herself to keep it under control. Instead, and acting like it was just natural, Skylar decided to go for a small walk around the corner. Knowing that Elizabeth knew, or hoping that she remembered more like it, not to just blurt out her name and wave her hands around to get her attention, Skylar began her walk around the edges of where the several alleyways came together. She kept the weapon easily hidden from view as she looked around, half pretending to be lost.

Which wasn't that far from the truth in this maze of passageways.

Her eyes found a girl in particular, a hood covering her face. Something seemed off, but she didn't stare. But... If she could just get a closer look underneath it...
Le Familiar Axery 1.1

Noise erupted from the other end of the converging alleyways. Keeping it to a slight minimum, Skylar glanced over to them. Only to notice who she had her eye on was already up and starting to walk forward. Thanks to her position, she was mainly behind the cloaked woman before she turned her head to look. But the urgency in her step, no. She didn't trust it.

It was at that moment that Skylar silently fell in suit, her feet falling in time with the one she was following. However, she cleared the distance much quicker than the figure, drawing much closer to Ashura than she would realise. Ashura was mid-step when Skylar acted. While not a single soul was watching, attention having been diverted to Elizabeth, her axe flicked out and she readied the weapon from behind her feathers. Sewn with each drop of strength that she could muster, she swung it, a diagonal arc against and across her back, which would dig deep into her back and spine if it connected.

---

Le Familiar Axery 1.2

She made note to go and tend to Elizabeth afterwards, seeing that she was knocked out. There was nothing she could do now for her, but distract this girl.

Because it certainly was Ashura.

The moment Ashura leaped away from Skylar, the woman realised that she would be out of reach from the swing due to her creating a rather large gap between the pair of them. Due to the distance, Skylar quickly pulled the upwards swing back to herself, quickly lessening the momentum to nothing in an instant. At the same time, she took a step back so that Ashura's hit, even if it would continue, would miss her completely. She kept her left hand free, spread out a little and ready to clasp the axe if needed. Although, Skylar learned to keep her distance from Zack, not wanting a repeat from last time. She internally wished that her wings were blades instead of this clunky axe, she gave a small smirk to the crouched woman.

Today was going to be fun...

Even if she failed this time.

---

Le Familiar Axery 1.3

The familiar adrenaline coursed through her, seeing the lust for bloodshed in Ashura's eyes. Skylar almost could tell that she was already considering exactly what she was going to do with her corpse as the criminal retaliated. Ashura took another step forward, allowing her momentum to carry through. Skylar took an easy step to Ashura's right, enough to easily dodge what would have struck her if she stayed still. With Skylars knees bent a little, she swung the axe in a downward arc towards her neck. But the woman was relentless, continuing her onslaught.

Skylar wrist pulled the weapon away from Ashura after the first strike, opposing hand catching just beneath the head as she used its bladed edge that to parry her fist. A quick, hard jerk-like reaction to cripple.

And afterwards, Skylar again took a step back, eyes narrowed in concentration, heart pounding with excitement and nerves.

---

Le Familiar Axery 1.4

Skylar's body twisted in perfect time with the fist. The hand might touch, but no bruising would come of it. The right rotating motion granted her a little extra momentum as her second hand clasped around the handle of the axe, prepared to counter any action and movement the other woman took. The blade was already within the distance spanning between Ashura's shoulders and neck, steel practically already kissing her skin. The blade, positioned the way it was already, had a singular way to prevent the blade from slashing through her neck. Which was to push it up. But Skylar's stance was already compensating, it had been the whole time and now, feet already partially apart, drastically shifted her legs as she dropped to the ground with her right knee, the one furthest from the handle, as closer one bent forcefully. Right leg protecting the left from attacks from the right with the same, stable stance. Though with her body being positioned over the blade and handle at the perfect angle, her grip tightened a tad as, throughout the stance change, it had been picking up in momentum rapidly and would appear to "suddenly" come down much harder right at the end of the rapid stance change. More momentum, her entire weight and strength was behind this single swing.

But it was after this when the assassins hand clasped around the handle. But with the axe coming down faster, with more weight behind it, speed at which it covered the previous distance nothing compared to the cleaving of the last few inches. The bladed edge, still primed for the woman's neck, would be practically uninterrupted by her attempt to hold it back from slicing through her neck. Even the incredibly delayed impact of the tip of Ashura's foot against the side of her right calf muscle, which was already grounded, would do nothing to stop her from taking this sturdy pose, nothing to stop Skylar from cleaving this axe through her neck.

Skylar only stopped this downward strike when the blade touched the ground... after severing her head from her torso.

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Le Familiar Axery 1.5

The blade cleaved through her throat, slicing arteries and veins. The woman would be dead in a few moments. Skylar breathed a heavy sigh, slowly standing from her crouched position. She refrained from smiling, relief bubbling in her chest that she didn't get herself killed.

Sky glanced at Ashura's face, her eyes still gleaming with a dying life.

Skylar would let her bleed out, and thankfully for her, everyone had cleared the area as they were mildly terrified of what had been happening. There was no one in sight at all. Skylar first picked up Elizabeths still living body and took her to one of the rooms which Nameless had indicated earlier. By the time she came back, Ashura was already dead, and Skylar almost dragged her along the ground towards a second room much like the one she took Elizabeth to.

She then left them both there for 'collection' and sighed, knowing what she had done was a deed of good before she made her way out to search for that viper once more...

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Le Familiar Axery 1.6

/END THREAD