Springtime In The City 58.

Vexil. 

With a gloved hand holding up the front of his cloak's hood so he can see where he's going in the pouring rain. 

Zam the ex mercenary follows Lisell Maera the scout across the street they're on as they head back north through the city to the Merchant's Rest inn. 

Through the pouring rain the youngest member of the group hears the scout Maera say something, he's not exactly sure what. 

He just nods as he continues to follow the attractive young woman who is originally from the city-state of Brattonbury. 

"What was that?" asks Zam the ex mercenary when they turn into the entrance of a lane, and stop there. As it's a wall with an archway, that's a few feet thick, and offers some cover from the pouring rain they find themselves in this morning, here in the city of Vexil. 

"I said it's fucking pissing down now" is the reply from Lisell Maera the scout, who gestures out to the street, and continues with "If it wasn't for the extensive sewer system they've got here in the city, a lot of the streets would be flooded". 

The ex mercenary who hails from The City Of Ruins nods his hooded head in agreement, as he once again wipes his wet face. 

"At least it's not that windy" says the scout Maera, who is a junior officer in the Scouts and Rangers division of the Armies of Farque. 

"That's something I guess" dryly adds Lisell Maera or Lis as she's more commonly called by those who know her well. 

Zam just grunts in reply to that, then he glances out onto the street, and to their left, the way they're going as they make their way back to the inn, where the group is staying whilst here in the city of Vexil. 

"There's that tavern up ahead, at the end of the street, on this side" says the youngest member of the group, who was scratching a living, a meager one at that, in The City Of Ruins before he was found by the group. 

"You know" continues the ex mercenary, who follows on from that with "The one with that deep doorway" he then adds "We can stop there next". 

Zam then says "It offers a hell of a lot more shelter than this archway" the attractive young woman who hails from the coast of The Southlands, grunts in agreement with that, then says "True". 

Then Lis ducks out from beneath the archway that's the entrance to a lane, and starts hurrying up the street, followed by the youngest member of the group. 

At the end of the street, the junior officer in the Armies of Farque, followed by the ex mercenary, hurry into the deep recessed doorway. 

Which offers them the most shelter from the pouring rain they've come across as they head back to the secluded inn they and the rest of the group are staying at, while here in the capital of the city-state of Vexil. 

Unless they enter a shop or business, which they're both reluctant to do. As they want to get back to the Merchant's Rest inn fairly quickly. To inform the others what happened at the Scriviners they were in a little earlier this morning. 

After wiping his face yet again, Zam sourly says to the lead scout in the Armies of Farque "Prefer it to be freezing cold and sunny, than all this rain". 

Lis who is originally from the coastal city-state of Brattonbury, where her mother was a street prostitute, and her father, a man she never met, was a sailor, grunts in agreement with the youngest member of the group. 

Then the attractive young woman who is a junior officer in the Armies of Farque says "Same". Before she pops her head out, to look in the direction they're going. 

"Might be my imagination" says Lisell Maera, who continues on with "I think it's getting lighter" after a brief pause, she adds "Maybe". 

Zam nods his hooded head in agreement as he looks across the street from them, then he says "You might be right". 

The ex mercenary from The City Of Ruins wryly smiles when the scout Maera says to him "You can lead the way this time". 

The youngest member of the group refrains from sighing, for they're about to turn a corner onto another street. 

And that they'll be walking directly into the wind, what little there is today. Even so, it'll be unpleasant for whoever is leading the way .

Zam nods to Lis, and asks the junior officer in the Armies of Farque "Ready?". The scout Maera replies with a nod of her hooded head. 

Then the ex mercenary leads the way out of the entrance way to a tavern they've been taking shelter in. He's quickly followed by the attractive young woman who hails from the city-state of Brattonbury. 

As they do, they both notice a doorway across the street open up, and a few people exit that particular business. 

Though they don't see it as they hurry up the street they're on, but the trio who just made their way from that shop. 

All look closely at Zam and Lis, though they're paying all of their attention upon the teenager who is originally from The City Of Ruins. 

Then the trio break out into a run, when the ex mercenary and the scout leader hurry around the corner onto the next street. 

"Fucking hell" mutters the ex mercenary as both wind and rain now hits him in the face as he leads the way back through the streets, here in the north of the city of Vexil. 

Zam who is regretting that he's leading the way now, is just about to glance back at Lis and tell her that. When he's suddenly shoved sideways by the scout Maera into an alleyway they're passing. 

While the attractive young woman who is originally from coastal city-state of Brattonbury, says to him in elvish "Zam watch out". 

The youngest member of the group goes stumbling into the alleyway, he goes to turn around, drawing his sword as he does so. 

And he sees someone go careening by him, deeper into the alley that the ex mercenary finds himself in. 

The teenager originally from The City Of Ruins, sees Lis ducking down, doing a spin kick as she does so. 

Taking out the legs of the figure swinging a sword at her, which passes harmlessly over the attractive young woman who is a junior officer in the Armies of Farque. 

As that person drops to the ground with a grunt of pain that Zam clearly hears over the falling rain. 

The ex mercenary turns quickly back around, to see whoever it is that went stumbling by him to deeper in the alleyway. 

As he does, the youngest member of the group is hit by something, that knocks him down to the ground in the alley. 

It's forceful, but not forceful enough that it damages Zam in anyway. Still he's momentarily stunned as he lies there on the ground in the middle of the alleyway in the pouring rain. 

The teenager originally from The City Of Ruins looks up, then blinks in surprise at what he sees. As he sees a cloaked figure standing there, not that far from Zam, holding a sword. A figure that has no head, while something dark and massive looms over it. The ex mercenary blinks again to realize what he's actually looking at. 

He slightly grimaces as the headless figure continues to stand there for another moment, before the sword drops from it's right hand, then the body minus it's head, follows it to the ground. 

"Zam you okay?" says Lisell Maera the scout, who hurries over, and helps the youngest member of the group up off the ground. 

"Huh?" says the ex mercenary, who after a moments pause, adds "I'm fine" as the junior officer in the Scouts and Rangers division of the Armies of Farque helps him up. 

Zam grimaces again, while next to him, Lis winces as the massive form of Axe the undead wardog, turns and looks at the two of them, before he spits out the head that's between his jaws. 

"Hell" mutters the scout Maera, the teenager who is the youngest member of the group, just nods his hooded head in agreement with that muttered oath from the attractive young woman who is originally from the coast of The Southlands. 

The two of them turn around when they hear a groan. And Zam sees it's the fellow who Lis kicked in the legs. Who is looking dazed as he lies upon the ground. 

Away to the side of him, is someone else. The ex mercenary who hails from The City Of Ruins blinks as he sees it's actually half of someone else. The top half. Where the bottom half is. The youngest member of the group has absolutely no idea. 

"Bloody hell" murmurs Zam who looks at Lis, then asks the junior officer in the Scouts and Rangers division of the Armies of Farque "Now what?". 

The scout Maera shrugs her shoulders in reply, then she walks back to the attacker who though dazed, is still alive. The teenager originally from The City Of Ruins follows her. 

"Let me guess" quietly says Zam in elvish, who follows that with "From Percy's order?". As the attractive young woman who hails from the coast of The Southlands pulls open the dazed fellow's cloak, then jacket. 

"He is" says Lisell Maera in the same language, who then steps back and out of the way after seeing the tabard beneath the jacket of the man who attacked her. 

Looking around, the ex mercenary says "What are we going to do about him?" as he gestures at the dazed fellow on the ground in the middle of the alleyway. 

Axe fixes that. For the massive canine moves forward, causing Zam and Lis to quickly step out of the way. 

Then the undead wardog nudges the half unconscious fellow on the ground, rolling the man over. Axe then steps on the man's back. Snapping his spine and killing him. 

"Shit" murmurs the scout Maera with a grimace, while next to her, the ex mercenary originally from The City Of Ruins winces. 

Then Zam after looking through the rain and out of the alleyway, says in the elven language "What about them?" as he gestures at the three bodies. Well, two and half bodies to be exact. 

"If we're seen leaving the alley, and those bodies are found" says Zam who follows that with "That's trouble we don't want". 

Once again, Axe comes up with a solution to that problem. The massive canine, who is well over six and half feet tall at the shoulders, and over seven foot in overall height. Not to mention he weighs  over fifteen hundred pounds. 

Grabs the fellow whose spine he just snapped by the right leg. And flings him up onto the top of two storey building to the right. 

The undead wardog does the same for the half of the body, and the headless body further in the alleyway. 

Lis and Zam share a look, then they look at Axe who softly barks at them a few times. Who then stamps on the head in the alley a few times. Turning it into a pulpy mess, which the rain will soon wash away. Then he leaps up to the roof of the building on the left side of the alleyway. 

"Pretty sure I think he wants us to get moving" quietly says the scout leader in the Armies of Farque. 

The youngest member of the group nods his hooded head in agreement as the two of them look up to the left, and find the massive animal on the roof of the building on that side of the alley, looking down watching the two of them. 

The attractive young woman who hails from the coastal city-state of Brattonbury, and the ex mercenary originally from The City Of Ruins share a look .

Then Zam quietly says "Best we get going again". The scout Maera nods her hooded head in agreement with him. 

At the mouth of the alleyway, the two of them look out on the street. And apart from a few people taking cover beneath an awning at the front of a shop, further down the street, and on the other side as well. The street is empty on this rainy morning. 

Both Zam and Lis exit the alleyway, and continue on their way. With the ex mercenary glancing up at the top of the buildings next to them. Knowing that Axe is up there keeping pace with the two of them as they head back to Merchant's Rest inn. 

After a little while as they walk side by side in the rain, the youngest member of the group asks the scout Maera "What happened to that third one?". 

The teenager who hails from The City Of Ruins follows that with "The one who was ripped in half?". 

"One moment I saw him entering the alley behind the one I took down" says Lis who continues on with "The next I was shoved to the side by Axe, then he took out that fellow who was in half on the ground" followed by "I think Axe flung the other half up onto the roof of the building on the right, before he knocked you down and out of the way and attacked the one who stumbled by you". 

"Hell, that was quick" quietly says Zam, the scout Maera nods in agreement then she admits to the ex mercenary "I didn't exactly see much, what with the rain and him moving so fast". 

The youngest member of the group nods at that, then he falls silent as the two of them hurry through the heavy rain, on their way back to the Merchant's Rest inn on this spring day. 

Whilst silently keeping watch over them, on the rooftops of the nearby buildings as he keeps pace with them. Is the undead Farqian wardog Axe . . . . . .