Rezkin launched two throwing knives ahead of him at the two strikers who blocked his escape. One of the knives was deflected when the man on the right caught it with his blade, but the other sunk deeply into the shoulder of the striker on the left. Rezkin had known these men all his life. They had been his trainers and sparring partners as long as he could remember. Of course, he knew their names, but his training told him to put all personal considerations aside. The strikers were no longer men. They were targets—targets that were trying to kill him.

Rezkin drew a dagger to catch the blade of the striker on the right and threw his weight into the man. As the striker fell, Rezkin grabbed the man’s face and smashed the back of his head into the cobblestones. He did not wait to see if the man was dead. Rezkin knew he would not be getting up again.

Spinning around, he kicked out at the man who had been on the left and swiped his legs out from under him. When the man fell, Rezkin stabbed the striker in the throat. Jerking the blade out just as quickly, he leapt over the dying man and ran toward the next foe. A loud snap made him veer to the side as a crossbow bolt whipped by his ear. In a movement faster than thought, he launched a throwing knife at the source of the bolt and heard a strained yelp as reward.

Rezkin feigned a slashing attack with the dagger, and the man he was closing in on raised his blade to deflect the attack. This left him open for what Rezkin truly intended. He dropped to the ground and skidded across the stone under the man’s guard to crash into him. As Rezkin tumbled forward, the striker flew over Rezkin’s back. It was unfortunate for the striker that the crossbowman had recovered and chose to launch his attack at that instant. The striker took a crossbow bolt to the face, but the bowman must have gotten closer because the bolt continued through the man’s head to burst free from his skull, casting blood and grey matter across the cobblestones.

Three strikers had now converged on him, but one backed off when he saw what had happened to the last man who had gotten between Rezkin and the crossbowman. Hearing a shnick, Rezkin knew the crossbowman had reloaded. He counted to three and then dove to the side just as the bolt was released. The two strikers nearest him were forced to dive out of the way as well.