End of an Era |Ash&Dakota&Audrey|

[Audrey Appleby]

The Usurpers were in shambles. The Kraken attack was supposed to be their big moment in history. A moment that people would tremble at the thought of. Well... it didn't go exactly to plan. The camp managed to fry the Kraken. Fry it. And then Audrey's followers stopped believing in the plan so they left. They were dropping off like flies. And Audrey was getting desperate. Usually, she never got this way, but she had to go to her last resort.

The Apollo boy. He was onto her since the start and now she had to make him pay. It only took a little digging to figure out who the boy was attached to and it wasn't a hard kidnapping at all. She brought the girl to the clearing where she first met the boy in the forest and tied her up to a tree. She was knocked unconscious, for now. But Audrey wouldn't be waiting for him for long. Oh no. She made sure to make a note to him so he knew. I have something very deer to you. Face me if you want it back. Hopefully he got the hint.

With her bait in position, Audrey took cover in one of the trees. She looked around her as she kept one of her knives out so she could be ready when he came to rescue the damsel in distress.

(tag Ashley Bates & Dakota King )

[Ashley Bates]

Ash hadn't needed any help figuring out who had left the note for him to find. Oh sure the remnants of the Usurpers were still around but there was only one who would direct their attack specifically at him and not the camp as a whole. Ash had been hoping to find the leader of the little rebellion before it could come back to haunt him but apparently it wasn't to be. Audrey had found a weakness and she had struck at it. Now she wanted to face him and Ash had no choice but to meet her.

For his part Ash wasn't playing around. He knew this was a trap but he would be damned if he let this girl slip away again to cause more trouble. That being the case he had left a note for Charlotte to find detailing where he was going and what was happening. He would probably hear about it later, if there was a later, but he held no romanticized notions of being the hero of some storybook fantasy. There was a real likelihood he and Dakota might die tonight and if that happened he would insure that Audrey was dealt with but not before he had his shot at her.

Gathering his things Ash went to the stable and saddled Rusher. He knew where Dakota would be taken and the fastest way to get there was to fly. Wearing his bow, head donned with his cowboy hat he looked like he was headed out to a shootout at the O.K. Corral and maybe in a sense he was. The location was different, a forest instead of a Tombstone Arizona, but it was a showdown nonetheless and one that he intended to win.

With Rusher he flew out to the forest but he didn't fly all the way to the place where Audrey would be waiting for him. This was no time to lose his head and just because he knew it was a trap didn't mean that he had to step in it blindly. Instead he touched down some distance away and approached the spot where they had met that night over the killed deer on foot keeping to cover as he went. He had to be careful now even if he did want to charge crashing through the forest. When he arrived at the edge of the clearing however, what he saw almost made him forget his caution.

From his hiding place Ash spotted Dakota's form laying crumpled on the ground and for an instant he thought that she was dead. If that had been the case he thought he might have gone mad before he ever got to Audrey but as he watched he caught the steady rising of the girl's chest and that, for the moment at least, set his mind at ease. She wasn't dead. There was still hope.

Taking another look around from his hiding place he notice no sign of Audrey. She was waiting for him and hoping to get an easy kill but if that was the case he was going to have to disappoint her. "Audrey." He called in a ringing voice that was sure to carry through the area and hide his location. "Audrey Appleby. I am here."

[Audrey Appleby]

Audrey waited in the trees. It would be any moment. Any moment and lover boy would come strolling in to save his girl. Except, there would be no saving today. Oh no. Instead, there would be death. The kind of death that should've happened during the Kraken attack. She quietly waited along the branches of the tree as her senses were on high alert. It wasn't long before she heard his voice booming from the forest. He was here. She chuckled quietly to herself as a wicked grin spread across her face. Two could play this game.

She gripped her knife a little harder as she moved across the branches and jumping across trees as silently as she could. Once she was a couple of trees over, she threw her dagger into the middle of the clearing before changing positions again. "You think you can save everybody," she said as she threw her voice too to conceal her location. "You think you can save camp, but can you save your pretty girl?" She laughed as she reached down to grab another knife strapped to her ankle. "Now is the moment of truth. Will you save her or will you fall like all supposed heroes do in history."

[Ashley Bates]

It didn’t take long for his words to be answered. As he watched. a dagger flew into the clearing and the one that he had been expecting to find spoke from the trees. Ash glanced around at the tree branches and carefully notched and arrow to his bow. She was on the move now changing positions and trying to find where he was just as sure as he was looking for her. It was a game of cat and mouse now. The only question was which one of them was the cat?

Moving cautiously from his cover and hunting her through the sounds of the forest Ash decided it would be best to keep her talking. Perhaps he could keep her distracted long enough for Dakota to get away or perhaps he would find her before she found him either way if there was any chance to get Dakota out of here alive he would have to buy some time. “You’ve lost Audrey.” He said ignoring her taunts. “Your plan has failed. Even those who were once loyal to you have been scattered. It is over now whether you believe it or not. You are a fallen hunter, a disgrace and even if you kill me you will die as you have lived, as a traitor."

[Audrey Appleby]

It was a game of cat and mouse between the two of them. Audrey made sure that she stayed the cat in the situation, but it didn't look like that Ash was going to give into being the mouse quite so easily. Her eyes darted along the trees as she tried to locate the boy. It seemed like he was going to stay hidden as much as was. Well, two could play this game. This very deadly game.

She gripped her dagger as she kept jumping between trees being very careful not to reveal her location to him. Not quite yet. She wanted to catch him off guard before he could use those damn arrows on her. She laughed, letting her laugh echo throughout the trees. There was no humor in this laugh though. It was very dark and very evil. "I have lost?" she mocked as she paused at a tree and smirked. "I think I will win. There will be always be some sort of a revolution, but you? There's only one you and you're going to die." She laughed again as she threw her dagger and it landed right by Dakota's feet. "Now, the question is, is your deerly beloved going to make it out or is she going to join you in Tartarus?"

[Ashley Bates]

This wasn’t getting them anywhere especially if the fallen hunter girl was content to take pop shots at Dakota while they circled each other. If they were going to face each other it would not be through the shadows. He needed to draw Audrey out and there was only one way that Ash could think to do that. “You have lost because you are a coward.” He said coolly. “You have acted from the shadows from the beginning sending other, stronger demigods to do your work for you because you knew that you could not move openly against the camp and when you actually did plan out an attack it fell apart completely because you did not have the strength to carry it out yourself. Even now you are a spineless creature who hides behind the body of an unconscious girl to try and draw your enemies to you because that’s the only plan of attack you have left. Everyone knows, even your former companions. Why else would so many turn themselves in? They look at you and say 'Look at Audrey, a pitiful disgraced hunter who was too weak to even handle one sneak attack mission' and they realize that they were on the losing side all along.”

Ash hoped that this gambit would be a success, hoped that it would at least make Audrey angry and force her into revealing herself. In any case he had said what needed to be said. Now all that remained was to give her what she wanted. If that was a showdown then it was time to be done with hiding in shadows. “You didn’t even intend for it to get this far. No, you would have hoped for the easy kill and not a direct confrontation. Someone like you could not hope to lead a rebellion against the gods. You were a horrible leader and an even worse hunter…” With that Ash stepped into the clearing to be seen with his bow lowered. “…and you don’t even have the courage to do what needs to be done now and face me.”

[Audrey Appleby]

The boy was all talk in Audrey's mind. He was trying to make her mad. Angry. Enough to lure her out into the clearing, but she wasn't falling for it. She kept jumping through the trees silently as she tried to hunt him down in all of his talk. However, they both seemed to be excellent hiders. But she wouldn't be hiding for long. She seemed to have struck a nerve in Ash, if not, she was hoping she did, since he walked into the clearing with his bow lowered. Perfect.

A smirk crept onto her face as she grabbed another knife from her body and gripped it tight before she jumped down from the trees. When she landed, she was right across from Ash. She straightened up as she chuckled a bit. "I'm glad you've decided to face your fate," she said lowly as she started to circle him slowly. "Any last words you want to say before you die? Maybe begging for mercy for your little girlfriend would be a good idea as well."

[Ashley Bates]

For a moment he wandered if his plan might not have worked then Audrey dropped from the trees across for him. She looked much as he had expected to find her with her clothes lined with a number of those throwing daggers that she favored so much. She apparently thought to impress him with her display but Ash wasn’t buying it. Dakota had been captured, people he know had been killed and this girl was responsible for it. Ash was done. He hadn't come here for games, hadn't come here to talk and if she was expecting him just to roll over without a fight she was about to learn that just how much fight was in him.

How often had she done this? How often had she forced others to dance to her own tune for her own sadistic pleasure? Ash wouldn't have doubted if the answer was quite a few because she was acting like she was used to being in control of the situation. Ash was no hero though and he refused to let this girl pull his strings. Without answering her question, in fact, without even saying a word Ash raised his bow and fired. This ended tonight one way or the other.

[Audrey Appleby]

Audrey kept circling Ash as there was a bit of a wild gleam in her eyes. She was so close to victory. The Usurpers could always be rebuilt. As long as there was chaos, they could always succeed. But this boy... she needed to get rid of him if she wanted her future to become a reality. She was waiting for him to say something... or not.

It was almost a blur that he drew his bow and fired at her, but Audrey missed it. Barely. She dodged out of the way just in enough time for the arrow to nick her shoulder. She hissed in pain as she glared at him. "Oh, you want to do this the hard way?" she mocked before she grabbed a knife from her side so she was duel-wielding. Two could play this game, but only one of them would succeed. And she made sure that would be her as she charged at him.

[Ashley Bates]

The shot was not a perfect one but even still it was enough to nick the girl as she dodged. Clearly he had caught her off guard but that was not a luxury he expected to get again. She was fast and before he could grab another arrow Audrey was on him with her blades flashing. Fortunately Ash saw her coming and used the only option available to him falling back and using his bow as a makeshift escrima stick to deflect her blows. Even still he was hard pressed to keep up with the fury of her assault.

Ash was on the defensive and at a disadvantage. Even though he was fast close quarters combat was not his specialty. He wasn't able to block all the slashes coming at him and Audrey succeeded in opening more than a few gashes with here blades. Still, what he lacked in skill he made up for in ferocity. There was more at stake here than just his life and he wasn't going to give up yet. Realizing that he had to change the flow of battle and regain some momentum Ash spun his bow around to tangle Audrey's hands sacrificing his weapon in the process. The bow string snapped with an audible twang but he used the moment of relief to launch his shoulder into the girl in a tackle that drove them both to the ground.

[Audrey Appleby]

Audrey would admit that Ash was good. A very worthy opponent, but he wasn't going to be good enough. Not against her and her blades of fury. But he managed to block her blows with his bow, but not all of them. That was the key. A few slashes were better than none, but she wanted to hurt him. Hurt him really bad and make him feel the most excruciating pain as he died.

But he did something that caught her completely off guard. He managed to tangle up her hands in his bow, sacrificing his weapon in the process. She paused for a moment as she tried to free herself, but that moment of letting her guard down meant that Ash got in a blow. It wasn't a damaging one, but it knocked Audrey off of her feet as she landed on her back hard on the ground. The fall caused her to drop one of her knifes near Ash, but it wasn't a loss for her. She managed to free both of her hands as she grabbed another knife off of her body before rolling onto her side as she tried to stab him.

[Ashley Bates]

Ash slammed into Audrey knocking her to the ground and forcing her to drop one of her blades. She would have others of course but Ash snatched the dropped weapon up without thinking. He didn't have long, she was coming at him again now but this time he was ready.

She was fast but Ash was faster. He sidestepped taking a slash down his arm but locking the hand holding the dagger there. He twisted the hand back hard until he heard the snap of bone and then shoved the girl to the ground thrusting the stolen blade into Audrey's chest around where her heart would be. He had seen how sharp she kept them before and the blade he held didn't disappoint as it sank deep.

[Audrey Appleby]

Things were getting a little bit desperate. Audrey knew she was at a disadvantage with how this battle was turning out. He should've been dead by now but here they were. She didn't think he would go for the discarded knife and she didn't think he would use it against her. But she was was wrong. So wrong. She tried to stab him, but he just grabbed her hand and bent it back as the bones in her arm cracked from the force. Audrey screamed out in pain before she felt a pain her in chest. This pain, however, was one she had not experienced before. She looked down to see the hilt of her own knife sticking out.

"Oh..." she said softly as her vision started to blur and she slowly felt herself fade away. So this was what it was like to die at the hands of your mortal enemy. Her limbs started to go weak as she stared off into the trees. She wouldn't see her girlfriend again, would she? "Free... I'm sorry..." she said with her final breaths before she collapsed and her lifeless body laid at Ash's feet.

[Ashley Bates]

And just like that it was over. Ash watched as Audrey glanced down at the knife protruding from her chest and held his combat stance until he finally saw the light fade from her eyes. As the girl's body slumped forward onto the ground Ash sank back against a nearby tree trying to catch his breath. As the flow of adrenaline finally began to taper off he suddenly became aware of how tired he was. He was breathing heavily, bleeding from cuts over his body and sore all over but he was alive. He was alive and Audrey wasn't and that was the important thing.

It wasn't the only important thing though. Ash's attention snapped back to Dakota in a sudden moment of clarity and he hurriedly pushed himself away from the tree to check on her. He rushed over to her as quickly as his tired legs could carry him and when he reached her he went to his knees beside her. He didn't have time to worry about her during the battle now though his concern flooded back over him washing his weariness away if only for a moment. "Dakota." He said checking her over for injuries. "Dakota. Gods Dakota wake up." After this if Audrey had done something to her, some final form of revenge...he couldn't think about it. Wouldn't. She had to be alright.

[Dakota King]

Dakota got off work in the infirmary when she was attacked. She had a cloth over her mouth and then black. And it remained black as she was knocked unconscious and carried to the woods. She was starting to come into consciousness when she heard someone say her name over and over again. A voice that sounded oddly familiar. She groan as she woke up enough to register she had a pounding headache. Chloroform. They used chloroform on her to knock her out to wherever this was. But that voice... that voice didn't want to hurt her.

She opened her eyes slightly as she saw a blurry figure, but that was enough for her to know who it was. "Ash..." she muttered as she opened her eyes a bit more. "What are you doing here?"