Alena stalked through the forest, wrapped and safely hidden in her cloak of shadows. She and her Master had been stalking each other already for the past half day, taking it in turns to track and ambush the other. She was tired and more than a little bruised from their past encounters, but the thrill of the hunt kept her alert and engaged. Despite having done this drill with her students many times there was an extreme difference in knowing that her prey could actually fight back.

The forest around her was deathly silent, all wildlife already having run off, or been threatened into silence, during their past clashes. She knew that her Lord and Master was here though. [Tracking] had led her here and her [Hunter’s Intuition] alerted her to the fact that her target was close. She wasn’t sure where exactly though. Was it behind those bushes? In the shadows of that tree? Or the one next to it? It was hard to tell.

Her master’s [Stealth] was well practiced and both of them had blocked off their soul link. The only thing she could feel through that was that he was alive. She fixed her grip on her daggers. This would be the final clash. She knew it and so did her Master, probably. Her mana reserves were slowly trickling dry to maintain her [Shadow cloak], despite constantly using [Meditation]. Her body was weary and her daggers heavy. A minute more and she would be at her limit. It was not a condition that she would advise anyone to fight in, but she steeled her resolve anyways.

Taking a deep breath she peeled herself away from the shadowed side of the tree, her cloak straining itself until it ripped free, the ragged edges of midnight trying to reconnect to the darkness she left behind. She ignored it and followed the last remains of her master’s tracks. The reason she’d halted her [Tracking] was because they suddenly stopped in a space between three trees. Now, she resumed her [Tracking], trying to piece together where he had gone.

Based of what she knew, her Master has used a burst of air to fling himself off the ground. The only question was, which way? Was it forwards, between the trees? Was it backwards, to backtrack? Maybe he’d just dodged sideways, and she’d be able to pick up his trail again. The leaves and ground that had been scattered by the blast of air made it difficult to tell in which direction he’d pushed off.

She bent down to try and get a better look. As she did so she heard the gentle rustle of leaves. It could have been the wind, or a small bird taking flight. It could have been nothing, but in this deadly silent forest it could be the difference between life and death.

Dropping down to her back Alena brought a dagger up, just barely blocking her Master’s. Her Lord and Master had dropped down on her from the canopy above and she recalled something he’d once said to her; ‘People rarely look up’. With him forcing his entire weight down on her she didn’t have the time to mentally kick herself. Instead, she kicked him, making use of his still unsure footing. He fell forward and she slipped under his legs, redirecting the weight of his strike to help her escape. All of this happened in a bare handful of seconds.

Forcing her body up, she kicked off the nearest tree, instantly redirecting her momentum. Her Master was ready, his conjured stone daggers already snaking towards her. She pushed forward. This was her last burst, her last gamble. The first dagger she parried, the second she dodged, the blade just barely missing her torso. She couldn’t avoid the knee that rammed into her though. With a sudden expulsion of breath, her momentum came to a sudden halt, before being reversed.

Alena felt herself flying backwards from the force of the blow, one of her daggers slipping out of her grasp as she momentarily lost control of her body. Her Master watched her fall, his eyes ablaze with the hunt, but in the last moments she saw shock, pain and… worry? All she felt was anger though. He didn’t need to worry. You worried about people that were helpless, but she wasn’t helpless.

With fierce desperation, surpassing her limits, she managed to grab onto his still extended arm. Her momentum pulled them both down, but she twisted so that they would fall together, instead of one on top of the other.

In a tangle of limbs they fell, the forest floor catching them. It was hard to breath in her winded state, even harder still when the ground drove what little remained of her oxygen out of her lungs. Despite that he forced herself onwards, bringing her free arm with the dagger around. It was aimed for his neck.

Something sharp pricked her stomach and she paused, looking down. A dagger was resting on her stomach, ready to rip her open.

She looked at her dagger, the point resting just above her Master’s neck, ready to end his life.

She looked at her Lord and Master. His eyes were wide and he was breathing heavily, but she savoured the look of surprise on his face.

“A draw” he said.

And a draw it was. She had proven to be his equal. She felt a smile form on her face, even as the last of her reserves, stamina, mana or otherwise, ran out.