7 Ash 121
Vanessa needed to shake off the dust from years of an otherwise easy life under the employ of the Michaelis family. To anyone else, she was still hard as iron with a stare that withered courage on the vine, but not to herself. She felt weaker, and could feel herself slowing down from years of neglecting her own training. She could still crack skulls without much issue, but she felt a shadow of the dread pirate she had once been.
Luckily there were easy ways for a woman of ill repute to refresh her memory of her glory days, and so Vanessa strode confidently down the twisting, winding streets of the Knob. Those that recognized her stayed out of her way, and there were many that recognized her. Gone were the hushed whispers of her cruelty or how many men she'd killed, but still those with any sense thought better than to agitate her. Years ago they would have cowered, now they simply looked away.
Gods, she had been strong then. Now she was little more than a glorified babysitter looking after a blind man. She cursed herself silently, forcing that thought away as quickly as it came. Anton was a good kid, and he deserved better than Vanessa, not worse. Still though it was difficult for Vanessa to reconcile the woman she had been with the woman she was now expected to be, even if they weren't tremendously different.
Those warring thoughts left her quickly when she found what she had come down here looking for. A large, wide open building with the sounds of combat and cheering spilling out onto the streets. Vanessa strode up to the bouncer, who took his measure of her, and then nodded her in without complaint.
She stepped through the doors and found herself standing on a large circular platform that overlooked a pit down below. Men and women stood at the edge of the platform and leaned over the railing to shout down at those below. Drinks flowed freely, and the entire establishment smelled like sweat and alcohol, familiar to Vanessa. If there was a sober one among them, Vanessa couldn't tell.
Combatants down below assaulted one another, and this match at least was single combat. One of the men landed a crushing blow to the other combatant's head, and the crowd erupted into jeers and cheers. The two traded blows fiercely, blood staining the sand that covered the dirt floor of the pit. It was a bloody business, and even when one of the men emerged victorious, he scarcely looked better off than the man he'd just beaten into the ground.
The two fighters left the pit, and the announcer immediately begun looking for their next contestants. The short, energetic woman promised glory, fame, and gold to anyone that could remain standing for just three minutes against her fearsome fighters. She made it seem so easy, though there were none in the crowd that seemed interested. Most were here to gamble on the fights, not participate. Not Vanessa, though. She strode up to the short woman and nodded.
“I'll take 'em on.” Vanessa said, and then gestured to the cutlass on her hip. The weapon was properly peace-bonded, a red rope tied from the guard to the scabbard to prevent it from being drawn “Alright if I use this?” she asked.
The woman cocked her head and inspected the weapon, and then Vanessa. “Don't see why not. Keep it bonded, though. Two on one for twenty-five gold seem fair?”
“More than fair. Deal.” Vanessa replied. Both her and the pit boss spit in their palms and shook hands, and immediately the pit boss wheeled around and begun to promote the next brawl, coming up with an entirely fabricated backstory for Vanessa in order to encourage betting. Odds were against Vanessa, but that in itself was tempting to gamblers. A single long shot victory was worth a dozen safe bets.
Vanessa stepped over to the railing, and placed both her hands on it. With a grunt of effort, she swung herself over and dropped down into the ring down below. She landed hard, and pain rocked through her ankles and knees. Gods, was this was getting old had in store? Take her now and spare her the trouble if so. She didn't let the discomfort show though, and straightened back up to see the crowd looking down at her with wide eyes.
“Our fearless newcomer can't wait for the brawl to begin, so let's not keep her waiting!” The pit boss shouted energetically while still taking money for the upcoming fight. Upon hearing the signal, two men emerged from swinging doors at the opposite end of the pit. One was shorter than Vanessa, but built like a house of brick. The other was Vanessa's size and lean. Neither seemed a match to her, but being outnumbered meant that scarcely mattered.
Vanessa took off her jacket and tossed it up to the pit boss who caught and folded it. Then Vanessa took her scabbard off her waist and held her covered sword out defensively. The pit boss took this to mean Vanessa was ready to begin, and so the crowd begun their countdown via uproarious cheering.
Three.
Two.
One.
The two fighters opposing her lurched forward, intending to use brute force to overwhelm Vanessa before she could find her footing, but Vanessa was too smart to let them. She kept her back to the wall of the pit to limit the range the men could attack from. When the short man lunged forward to grab her scabbard, Vanessa wrenched her arm back and smashed the wooden sheath across his knuckles. He howled in pain, and tried to retaliate with another strike, but Vanessa was quick to put the taller man between them. These men didn't seem to have tactics in spades, so Vanessa stacked them easily and made it difficult for the two of them to attack her at the same time.
The tall man swung a high kick aimed for her side, and Vanessa took it. Pain bloomed and stars twinkled in the corner of her eye for a moment. Had punks like this always been so strong? Instinctively, Vanessa snapped her free arm down and caught the tall man's leg, pinning it against her side. She pulled his leg up until his ankle was tucked into her armpit, then slammed her weight forward. She crunched the flat of her sword into his nose while heaving with her other arm, and the man toppled backwards into the sand with a surprised yelp.
The shorter man crashed forward, stepping over his recovering friend and slamming into Vanessa's chest. His shoulder charge was strong, and Vanessa hadn't yet recovered her footing. She was sent reeling backwards. The air was forced from her lungs in a heaving exhale that left her breathless and gasping. It only took her a few seconds in the heat of the battle for her to recover, but by the time she did his arms looped around her stomach in a vice grip.
“Oh come on, for the love of-” Vanessa trailed off with a sigh. Was this idiot trying to win, or look good for the crowd? He tried to lift her off her feet, but Vanessa quickly brought her ankle around to anchor around his own. When he heaved upwards he was left trying to pull against himself, and Vanessa didn't budge. In retaliation, Vanessa brought her free arm down and latched it around his neck in a guillotine choke. With her other hand she beat him with the pommel of her sword, hammer striking his back with quick, heavy slams that would certainly bruise. She tried to avoid anywhere she thought might permanently injure him, though he didn't seem to appreciate the effort.
The tall man had recovered, stumbling to his feet and holding his bloody nose. He swung for her madly. She dodged the first, ducking to one side while still holding onto his ally. The second strike caught her in the jaw and that familiar pain shot through her face. It rattled her mind, and her vision scattered. To avoid the third punch, Vanessa shoved the shorter fighter into the taller one, and Vanessa retreated across the pit to recover. The two men untangled themselves quickly, but both seemed more than a bit ragged. Vanessa didn't let herself swell with confidence yet, and she steeled herself for one last confrontation.
They came at her at once now, one on each side so that she had no easy way to avoid them. They were learning, how unfortunate. When they both were mere steps away, Vanessa dropped low and grabbed a fistful of the sand on the ground. She sent it spraying in the tall fighter's face, and he brought his hands up by instinct. In that brief lapse of concentration, Vanessa swung her sword hard, and it smashed against the back of the man's head. He stumbled and then fell back onto his ass in a daze.
The shorter man was shaken, but undeterred. He charged forward, but was unable to close the distance before Vanessa brought her sword around to slam into his jaw. The weight of the strike sent him crashing into the wall of the pit, and Vanessa stepped behind him.
“I yield.” He said, sputtering.
“We both know that's not how this works.” Vanessa said so the crowd could hear her. Those above bellowed their approval, having come for a bloodbath.
Vanessa's next words were under her breath, and she made sure not to look at her opponent when she said them. “When I hit you next, go down.”
She pulled him back by his hair, and cocked back a haymaker. She turned him around to face her, and swung forward with such momentum she even lifted one leg off of the ground when following through. It was a tremendously flashy display that otherwise hid the fact that when she struck him she was pulling her punches. He sold the strike well, floundering backward and flopping onto his back, defeated.
The crowd alighted in cheers enough that dust shook from the rafters Money changed hands, and a rope ladder was tossed down for Vanessa to ascend. Once she was halfway up, thankful patrons pulled her up the rest of the way. They clapped her on the back, and some claimed she'd just made them rich.
Satisfaction washed over Vanessa, and the pain in her side and across her jaw was easily forgotten. She slipped her sword back into place on her hip, and then made her way to the pit boss who handed her back her coat and a small pouch of coins.
“Could make you a real feature here if you're ever interested.” the boss offered. “Some real nice work out there.”
The thought was tempting, but Vanessa shook her head as she slid her coat back on. “Already gainfully employed, thanks. You'll see me around though.”
The pit boss made an exaggerated show of rolling her eyes. “Whatever job you've got doesn't deserve you. I tell you that.”
“You have that right, at least.” Vanessa said before taking her leave.
