@haurchefantgreystone
Resika gasped, panting for breath, hunched over slightly. It seemed like everything hurt, and she was covered in dust and blood, not all of it hers. Her brother had told her this might happen, but so soon? And how did they know where she was? Jade eyes slid over her remaining assailants - two male Miqo’te, a bit on the bulkier side, both with menacing grins that promised pain and unpleasant things. The third was still on the ground, screaming profanities and attempting to pull out the arrow she had jabbed through his unarmored hand - he had tackled her to the ground, but quick thinking had an arrow in her hand as a makeshift weapon, and she had driven it straight through. He’d be occupied for a bit.
She shifted on the balls of her feet, one hand held out with her dagger, the other held protectively in front of her - too close for her bow. It was two against one, and she was injured while they were not, save for a few scratches and shallow wounds from her dagger - she really didn’t like her odds. There was nowhere to go, however, out in the middle of the desert, nobody to call out to for aid. So she fought with all she had. A slight movement, and then -as one- the two males rushed at her, going for opposite sides. She ducked down and backwards, barely avoiding a fist to the face. She kept the movement going, flipping backwards over her head on her hands, kicking out her feet, and caught one under the chin, sending him stumbling away. As she came up, she grabbed a handful of the bountiful dirt and sand in her unoccupied hand, and flung it at the other male. Muffled curses told her she had hit the mark, and she glimpsed him scrubbing at his face. She didn’t bother to watch her handiwork and took off running, in an attempt to get some distance, buy time to line up a shot or teleport. She wasn’t going to last much longer in this rather one-sided fight. She could feel the blood running down her arm where claws had scratched at her, and a wet burning on her back told her she hadn’t quite dodged the swipe there either. Her left eye was already swelling up a bit from a fist she hadn’t dodged, surely bruising, and she could feel the cut in the middle of her cheekbone throbbing angrily, just under her eye. A misplaced step sent her tumbling, and she cursed as she fell, pain flaring in her right knee.
A glance back told her that the males were recovered and coming again - it was now or never, really. Summoning her strength and focus, she thought of cooler climes, of a warm hearth, and a bright smile. She thought of safety. Somewhere far away that they would never think to follow. She finally felt the aether swirl around her after what felt like eternity, and she smirked, offering a weak, but jaunty little wag of her fingers to the approaching males, disappearing in time for their claws to grasp empty air.
--
She landed in a painful heap on cold, snow covered flagstones, instantly beginning to chill in the frigid air, a sharp contrast to the hot, dusty desert she had just escaped. A pained hiss escaped her lips as her leg gave out on her as she arrived. She didn’t bother trying to get up, and just scooted back to lean against the Aetheryte. Someone would be along to help her, she was sure; while injured adventurers were probably not uncommon, she figured she looked quite the sight, slumped over as she was, battered and bloody. She closed her eyes and thunked her head against the stone behind her, finally breathing easier, the tense lines of her body relaxing just a bit. The dagger clattered out of her numbing fingers. She was safe.
