Name: Charisse Race: Human

Ht: 5’6, Wt: 130, Sex: Female,

Archetype: Rogue

HP: 7 / 7 Mana: 0 / 0

Stats:

Physical: 2, Moxie : 3, Spiritual: 2, Luck : 3,

Agility : 3, Magic : 2, Mental : 2, Energy : 2.

Relevant Skills: Agility - Dodge, Agility - Shortsword, Archetype - Awareness, Archetype - Opportunistic Strike, Physical Melee - Knife, Ranged - Bow, Ranged - Dagger, Stealth - Hide, Stealth - Move Silent

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Charisse crept through the thick trees with the top three students from the village. She stopped by a tree, looked left at Sirah, who hugged a nearby tree. A dozen yards ahead, a goblin leaned against a tree. Charisse gave a soft snap of her fingers, Sirah looked toward her.

Pointing to herself, Charisse then pointed to Sirah and made a little circle motion, and pointed toward Sirah's left. Glancing behind, she met her other two students' eyes, Xantha and Fredrick, pointing at them then pointing in a circle around the other way, they started moving.

Working her way through the undergrowth, Charisse made sure to keep distance between them and the goblin. The muffled crack of a stick caused her to freeze. Slowly turning her head, she looked to the goblin, still looking off in another direction.

Carefully turning around, she scanned the woods to see if anyone else heard the sound. Movement in a tree caught her eye; taking a moment to watch, a green face with big eyes looked in her direction. Throwing a hand behind her, she held it behind her in a fist.

Turning around slowly, she looked at Sirah and pointed up toward the goblin in the trees. Sirah nodded as Charisse carefully pulled out her bow. She pointed at the goblin, then her bow, then Sirah; she held up three fingers and slowly counted down to one. Sirah nodded and pulled out her bow as well. Both notched an arrow, then pulled back. Quietly Charisse whispered, "One, two, three," then released her hand at the goblin on three.

Both arrows flew and hit the goblin in the chest. It gasped, then fell from the tree, thumping against the ground.

"Yeah!" Sirah said as she notched another arrow. Charisse frowned and threw a finger to her lips as she looked around.

The forest seemed to ignore the fact a goblin just fell from a tree. Glancing around, then back toward the initial goblin guard, Charisse saw her other trainee's getting ready to spring. They were too close to the goblin for Charisse and Sirah to try and fire. Holding her bow in one hand, she ran toward the goblin, ignoring if Sirah followed.

The goblin turned and looked directly at Charisse after she stepped on a small pile of sticks. It smiled and raised a bow toward her. As it pulled back on the string, its eyes grew wide, then it gasped and dropped the weapon. Xantha and Frederick appeared behind the goblin, as they slowly lowered it to the ground.

Squashing the pide filling her, Charisse slowed and walked up to her trainee's.

"Only one of you should have gotten close; there could be other guards hiding around," Charisse said. She glanced around; nothing in the forest moved nearby. "Good job."

Reaching down, she grabbed the goblins bow and quiver, handing it to Frederick, who didn't have one. The shortsword and its sheath she also snagged and put it into her backpack. Pointing toward the town, she stalked her next prey.

The forest thinned and gave way to several wooden huts built in a long row. Each was using the wall of the other for support. Charisse guessed they were ten by ten huts based on where the wood for walls stuck out. The rear of the buildings clear of goblins, and several chimneys had smoke drifting upward from them.

"Are these the only buildings?" Charisse quietly said as she pulled Sirah closer.

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"Nay, another row across the road from them, same style," Sirah said.

With a nod, Charisse pointed at Frederick and Xantha, then pointed off to the right. She pointed at herself and Sirah, then to the left. All of the trainees nodded. Holding up her hand, palm open, Charisse made sure they were looking at her. Shaking her head back and forth, she made a cutting motion across her neck—the signal to not engage or kill anyone.

Moving off to the left, she crept along the woods' edge, keeping trees and brush between her and anyone keeping watch. The distance between the treeline and the building was a little over ten feet, trees crowded around the town, only a couple dozen feet separating the building from the woods. Mentally she noted she needed to tell the village to clear more space around the town for defendability.

A branch above her shifted. Charisse looked upward. A goblin sleeping in the tree snored and moved a little. Throwing up a fist and pointing upward, she stopped and looked Sirah in the eyes. Waiting for her trainee to look upward as well, Charisse carefully pulled her bow out and notched an arrow.

With a nod, her trainee did the same. Charisse nodded once, twice, then, glancing at her trainee, Charisse slipped and released her arrow. It hit the tree a few feet below the goblin; Sirah's arrow hit the goblin, knocking it to the side. The creature awoke with a yell, then rolled to the side and out of the tree. The surprised goblins face passed by Charisse before it hit the ground with a solid thunk.

Charisse quickly notched another arrow and stepped up. Keeping the tree was between her and anyone coming out of the huts. A goblin came around a corner, short sword in one hand, a small rounded metal shield in the other.

Notching another arrow, Charisse fired, the arrow flew through the air and hit the goblin right between the eyes. The creature tumbled backward as it went limp from the arrow's momentum and it's movement, causing it to slump to the ground. Another goblin stepped from behind a building, stopping at its comrade's sudden death and lifted it's shield up.

Charisse's smile at killing the first goblin was wiped away as the second yelled a warning.

"Fuck, retreat!" Charisse said as she turned around and pulled Sirah. The trainee loosed an arrow that flew wild into the woods. Dragging her trainee back into the woods, Charisse ran, carrying Sirah as she crashed through bushes and undergrowth.

Arrow whizzed by, missing by several feet, Charisse juked to the right and pulled her trainee with her. A moment later, crashing of tree branches rushed close to her; pulling out her dagger, she waited to spot her next target.

Frederick and Xantha appeared through a wall of leaves. Frederick, with an arrow poking out of his shoulder. He smiled at Charisse and kept running.

"Sorry, my fault," Charisse said as she focused on keeping her breathing regular.

"Maybe, we accidentally collapsed a couple of shacks upon them," Frederick said, jerking his head toward Xantha.

"Keep running, once…" Charisse was interrupted by an arrow that slammed into Fredericks back; he tumbled into the dirt. She stopped and knelt by her student. The other two also stopped. "Keep running; I'll drag Frederick if I have to."

Frederick had an arrow deeply lodged into his back. Coughing, red specks of blood splattered Charisse's shirt.

"Leave me, I'm dead," Frederick said.

"No, not yet," Charisse said.

"Then kiss for luck," Frederick said.

"The fuck?" Charisse recoiled, "really now?"

"Worth a try," Frederick said. He coughed a few more times before taking a painful breath. "Lean me against a tree with some arrows."

Charisse placed him against a tree and dropped her quiver of arrows.

"Now leave me,"

"Nope," Charisse said as she pulled out her shortsword and dagger. Stepping over to a tree, she hid against the trunk. As Charisse moved behind a tree, Frederick did the same with his bow drawn.

Two goblins burst through the bush as they chased after the fleeing villagers. Both passed by Charisse and Frederick without a glance. Charisse lept toward the second one;

Leaping onto the back of the goblin, and stabbing her knife into it's back, the creature fell to the ground and squealed in pain. Piercing a second time, Charisse looked up toward the second goblin even after the beast ceased moving. The other goblin was lying facedown in the dirt, two arrows sticking out of it's back. Smiling at Frederick, she turned around toward the village. Several goblins ran toward them.

"Just hide," Charisse said as she stepped behind a tree.

A goblin reached around the tree and slashed at Charisse with its claws. Easily dodging out of the way, she returned with a slash of her own, the dagger met resistance from either the formidable creature's skin or the bark of the tree. Charisse rolled backward away from the tree for more space. An arrow appeared in the creature's chest as it tried to come around the corner.

"I told you to hide," Charisse said.

"And miss out on the fun?" Frederick said.

"Protect yourself, or I swear to the gods, I'll gouge your eyes out myself." Charisse hissed. Another goblin rounded the tree coming into view.

Her dagger caught the goblin under its chin; as she wiggled the blade, the creature jerked before she pulled it out. Another goblin appeared above her as if leaping from the tree; an arrow appeared in its throat as it flew, stopping it, causing it to fall in front of Charisse.

Another goblin burst through the brush, a shortsword in hand. Charisse was looking toward Frederick as the creature attached with its weapon.

Moving to the left, she managed to avoid the sword of the goblin. An arrow appeared in the creature's neck before her dagger got close.

"Focus on protecting yourself," Charisse hissed. She stabbed the fallen goblin for good measure. Stepping between the path and Frederick's line of fire, she clenched her daggers.

"In my way," Frederick said softly.

"Not in mine," Charisse replied as another goblin broke through the branches. This creature was more significant and thicker than the other goblins. Stabbing once with her dagger, stabbing the creature in the chest, it roared back at her.

The sword of the goblin swung down faster than Charisse could dodge. Shaving off her arm's skin, she screamed in pain as the creature's weapon sunk into the ground before stopping. An arrow appeared in the creature's throat, and it collapsed to the ground.

"That one was fucking mine!" Charisse yelled. Turning toward Frederick, she spotted a goblin coming from behind the tree. Throwing her dagger at it hitting between the eyes, causing it to slump to the ground immediately. "Ha!" she yelled before turning toward the next creature crashing through the bush. Slashing with the shortsword, she screamed in victory before she hit the monster.

The blade of the sword dug itself into the muscle of the creature's massive chest. It screamed back at her as it reached down and pulled the sword out. Even as the weapon's sharp edge sliced open the creature's hand, it gripped the blade and roared in Charisse's face.

Charisse's hand shook as the goblin roared. The creature licked its lips as it grinned at Charisse. She took a step backward to get more room to swing, at least that's what she told herself. Swinging the shortsword, it missed the goblin by several inches. Charisse took another step back and tried to get the blade back up to defect the next attack.

The goblin swung it's clawed hand toward Charisse, missing her by inches as she dodged out of the way. She tumbled backward, and as she came up, she thrust the shortsword forward toward the goblin.

As the sword thrust outward, the goblin was falling toward Charisse. The point of the blade pierced it's jaw, hitting the back of the skull. Its eyes grew wide and lost focus. Pulling her sword out, she stood up and grabbed Frederick.

"We're leaving," Charisse said as she threw him over her shoulder and staggered off into the woods.