As the Lightning Strikes [OPEN]

[Sun Dao]

His heart was thudding in his ears, drowning out even the thunder rolling through the air. "I'm sorry." His whisper was lost in the deafening torrent of rain as Sun Dao released his grip on the string. The other man dropped to the ground halfway through an attempted sideways jump, a bit of the fletching from an arrow barely visible jutting from the mans chest. He stirred briefly before going still. The arrow had pierced the heart despite the poor visibility and interference of the rain. Dao felt his stomach turn, a wave of nausea forcing him to fight to keep his balance. There was movement in the trees beyond where the dead man lay. More were coming.

Sun Dao stepped backwards, in an attempt to continue his flight, but still feeling slightly dizzy, his foot did not find purchase in the mud and the world spun. The pack on his back caused Dao to land harder than he should have, and he felt the breath leave his lungs as he landed hard on his front. There were shouts, and he knew he had been spotted. Scrambling to his feet, struggling to breathe, Sun Dao gripped his bow tightly and fled toward the treeline once more as quickly as his legs would take him. The world was a blur, and the sound of his feet, the rain, and the shouts of his pursuers blended together into a jumble of noise. He couldn't understand what they were saying, but it wasn't kind. An arrow bounced lazily off a tree in front of Dao, and he was intensely grateful of the heavy rain. If the other archer was even slightly competent with a bow, it would have been extremely hard to miss at this range.

Reaching behind as he ran, Dao grasped half-length arrow in his right hand, and hastily slid it into the bamboo shaft. He was nearly at the trees, but a few steps later he was ready to fire. Twisting awkwardly as he ran he aimed back to his left, slowing himself briefly for the chance to take another of his pursuers down. His eyes widened when he saw the steel blade heading for his neck.

Sun Dao let his right leg buckle, lowering his bow and leaning down as he slid to a stop on his right knee. The other man had been running as well, and the wild swing passed harmlessly over Dao's head. Immediately he launched himself back upward at the swordsman, slamming his right shoulder into the others right side, knocking him clear off his feet. There were three more coming across the clearing, with the bowman standing still at the far edge by the body of the man Dao had killed not a minute ago. His bow was raised again, and he was pulling his arm back, arrow loaded. Sun Dao had not let his hands fall from his bow despite the scuffle, and he brought it back up, exhaling as he drew and released the arrow in one smooth motion. The small arrow was barely visible as it sliced through the rain, coming to rest in the chest of the hostile bowman. That is how you shoot in the rain. is what he would have thought, had he had the time to form a coherent thought.

Dao took off into the woods at full speed once again as the pursuers gained ground rapidly across the clearing, and the swordsman at his feet floundered in the mud in the attempt to gain his feet once more. Four more, he thought, terrified, they had wounded, if I'm lucky they will break off the chase. But he knew the truth, the four behind him were armed, and angry. Two men down would not stop them, but a third might do the trick. He pulled another arrow from the quiver, gripping it tightly in his palm, and risked a glance over his shoulder. The pursuers were half a dozen paces behind, coming in and out of view through the thick undergrowth. It looked like Dao was putting distance on them. He willed his legs to move faster, and prayed his feet would keep him upright.

He had left the last road behind a while ago when the armed men came at him, but Dao knew there was a road in this direction. Where is it!? his mind screamed as the distance passed and there was no sign of the open space he needed so badly. He was not a good fighter, and the small blade at his waist would be less than useless against four armed men. His only chance was distance and space, one of which he was hopefully gaining as he ran. But without open space his chances of the arrow actually striking flesh were thin with so many trees to hide behind. Then through the woods he spotted a break ahead. Thirty paces. Twenty. Ten. Five. And the heavy rain hit his face once again as he burst out onto the roadway, turning sharply to his left and sliding in the muddy mess that the dirt road had become. A few stumbling steps later and he was running full-tilt once more.

Out of the corner of his eye Sun Dao saw the four burst from the trees, one pointed and shouts rang out. He could hear the footsteps behind him now, the downpour had lessened, and Sun Dao knew he would finally have the advantage if he could just get more distance on them. A number of things would need to go right if he were to survive this, and he forced himself not to think of what would happen if he missed, or if the remaining pursuers didn't stop their chase if Dao were to take down another. His hopes were pinned on their concerns for their own lives.

If they don't stop.. He pushed the thought from his mind, leaned forward, and ran like never before, in his left hand clutched the bow and bamboo shaft that would make shooting the short arrow in his right hand possible. The pack on his back was heavy, but it was precious to him, and valuable to the right stores. Sun Dao was not yet ready to leave it behind, and so he ran blindly ahead, listening to the shouts and footsteps behind, hoping beyond reason that he could get the distance he needed.

[Zhong Feng]

((Hope you don't mind :3))

Zhong Feng walked in the woods by himself, rain pouring over him. His crimson armor was slick and wet, and he held his spear over his shoulder. His axe lay at his side. Zhong Feng had just got finished with a "job". That "job" meant finding and destroying a bandit hideout. Originally it was five of them, but by the time it was done, everyone lay dead but him.

That was, of course, because Zhong Feng wanted to. He would take the money that was promised to him when he returned and not his "co-workers'" share either. He cared not for the monetary value of things, but the blood value of things. If someone told him to kill someone, he'd do it if he liked the person. And that was rare.

As of this moment, he was thinking of the look on his allies face as he sunk his axe into his back. The look of surprise and disbelief as he turned on him. It filled Zhong Feng with delight. Just the thought of it sent ripples of joy down Zhong Feng's spine, but he did not smile. No, Zhong Feng only smiled in the act. Never at thinking about the act.

But as he was walking through the woods, he thought he heard shouting. He could tell that this wasn't a simple fight, the way he could the roughness in the voice through the torrent of rain told him that this wasn't just any type shouting. And like a tiger, he bolted off in the direction of the shouting. As he made his way, he saw a dead man, an arrow protruding from him and Zhong Feng inwardly smiled.

The blood he saw was now dripping out of the man's body and he could tell it was fresh. Looking around he saw tracks leading away from him. From the shouting he could guess that someone was chasing someone else. Zhong Feng ran off again, this time at a higher speed than before. Despite having such heavy armor, he ran as fast as many people. He had conditioned himself to do everything in his armor, and he was rarely out of it. And today made no difference.

He closed in on the group as he could see the men running ahead of him. He quickly pulled out his axe and balanced it in hand as he was running. After taking careful aim he threw it at one of the persuers backs. He did not know why and who they were chasing, but he cared not. As the first man fell he outwardly smiled. A sick twisted smile of a maniac .

One man was shocked to see his ally go down beside him and he turned and called to his friends. But before he could do anything, Zhong Feng assualted him with his spear, thrusting it deep into the man's throat, almost severing the head completely. As the man dropped dead to the ground blood sprayed out on Zhong Feng. He smiled madly and said, "I am the Crimson Demon, the Murderer of Shu. Come... Face me and I shall drink from you blood."

[Sun Dao]

(Of course I don't mind)

There was a metallic -thunk- behind Dao, and for half a second his legs nearly locked up, afraid that noise was a weapon striking his own body. His nerves told him that nothing was injured, and he risked a look over his shoulder just in time to see one of his pursuers fall to the mud with an axe head tucked neatly between his shoulders. A fifth man had appeared behind the bandits, and Dao stopped hard in the mud, sliding a long distance in the slickness as he raised his bow. The fifth man took down another before Dao had even finished raising his weapon, and the two remaining men paused, briefly, but it was enough. The new arrival shouted something, but though the others heard, the rain swallowed the voice before it reached Dao's ears.

Dao released his fingers and an arrow landed in the side of the skull of the closest attacker, only half a dozen steps away, who had been looking back to see the commotion. There was only one man left, and he had come to a halt a near even distance between Sun Dao and the one who had come to his aid. His head shot back and forth between the two while Dao reloaded and took aim. He said nothing, hoping that the last attacker would simply flee back into the woods.

Dao's eyes flicked to the arrival, covered in blood and heavily armed, he was not an oddity, but the look in his eyes seemed.. Off.

Dao didn't have time to think more on the matter as his eyes came to rest back on the final assailant. The man's hand holding his sword came up, and down, and up again, as he tried to decide what to do. Sun Dao felt himself an honorable man, and despite the desire to protect his own life he could not bring himself to loose another arrow unless the man attacked him directly. The attacker turned toward Zhong Feng who was a few steps closer to the treeline than Sun Dao, and lunged as quick as he could manage, sword up, hoping to take the man out and escape into the woods.

An arrow flicked into the meat of the shoulder of his sword arm, The blade falling from his hand, sinking deep into the mud as the man collapsed to his knees, his left hand coming up to grasp the arrowhead of the miniature arrow that was poking through the other side of his shoulder.

Run, damn you. Run! Dao shouted in his mind, he had no desire to see another death, despite the fact that the man was trying to kill him just seconds before. Dao lowered his bow and moved, slowly this time, to reload in case he tried something stupid again.

[Zhong Feng]

Zhong Feng looked the archer over well, and saw an average man, not a man like him. He did however believe he was an exceptional archer judging by the man he had killed a while back. The percision to shoot and get a kill shot while running takes real skill. He knew that if they fought, Zhong Feng would have to get real close before he could do anything.

The man lunged at Zhong Feng only to be shot by an arrow. Once again, Zhong Feng had to admire the man's ability as an archer. He picked that spot and fired, hoping to stop anymore bloodshed. Inwardly Zhong Feng laughed, because he knew that it wouldn't stop. Zhong Feng would take the life of this man.

The assailant looked up at the man and stared at him. The cold look in his eyes and the burn scars upon his face were easily visible, the lack of hair on one side of his head, and the bloodly grin upon his face showed the man that he wasn't going to survive. He only drooped down low and prepared for the worst.

Zhong Feng kicked the man over on his back. The assailant looked up confused. But as he looked up he saw a foot come crashing down on his face. Zhong Feng, a very heavy, six foot tall man, easily crushed the man's skull with a sickening crunch, blood and brain matter shooting out from all orifices. Zhong Feng lifted his foot from teh man's face and smiled.

He then proceeded to retrieve his axe. After he retrieved it, he began licking the blood off of his weapons. The blood, still fresh and flowing, dripped off onto his chin, creating a bloody beard in the stubble that caught it. As soon as he was done he smiled once more, this time at Sun Dao. His grin was as red as the blood he drank, and his eyes darker than the abyss.

"I am Zhong Feng." Zhong Feng was a man of very few words, and these he said were very rough. He did not want to waste words on formalities and what not, it was not how he grew up. Zhong Feng did know however that proper introductions were needed for people who would be... allies? That wasn't the word he was looking for, but he supposed it would work for this situation.

[Sun Dao]

Sun Dao lowered his bow, never taking his fingers off the string. He very well may have been saved from one evil, only to stumble into another. Dao opened his mouth to speak, then closed it slowly, a look of calm coming over his expression, This man is dangerous, his mind told him, insult him and there will be more death today. He measured the other very carefully, he had obviously been in many fights, perhaps not always completely victorious or unharmed judging by the scars and burns, but always alive, and most likely with his enemies dead. The blood pounding through his head was distracting, he was breathing hard and felt like collapsing. It was very hard to think, but Sun Dao needed to know if he was still in danger.

"Zhong Feng! It is a name I shall tell to my children when I speak of the story of this day." This man had obviously relished in the combat, and more importantly the killing of a defenseless enemy on the ground before him, something which disgusted Sun Dao to his core. He was careful not to let the shock of what happened show on his face, as he assumed this man did not wish to be a savior, and calling him such might very well be insulting. There was a look on the others face, a look of passion and glee, and it made Dao nervous. Fortunately he had always been good at adapting his personality,

"A masterful performance you put on, Zhong Feng, these bastards wouldn't have been a match for you in any situation." Dao looked from body to body, "One of the shorter fights in my life, I should think."