《Assassin's Creed: Outlaw - Book One》A Rough Counsel
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Yughi slept near to Stafford in one of the pit-hides at Robin's encampment. He had not slept easily since leaving Greece, almost a month ago. The relief of having attained his destination meant that he now slumbered deeply and awoke refreshed.
He was eventually awakened by the sound of shouting nearby. Some of the argument that prompted Yughi's waking had folded into some instantly forgotten dream. The first thing that Yughi consciously heard was:
"Caution be damned, Robin! If we let these bastards pick us off one by one how long before people desert our cause? We can't leave Will behind, not if we give a damn about anyone following us here."
"No one is suggesting that we leave Will to his fate," Robin's voice. "What I am saying is that it will profit us nothing if we lose five men to rescue one."
"But at least then the men will have a choice," thundered the loud voice of Robin's challenger. "They will know that they have brothers who will not abandon them. It will make us stronger by more than three pairs of hands."
Yughi found himself, again, on two sides of a debate. He decided it would be best to let his presence be known. He got up and quietly lifted the lid of his pit. The other three outlaws he was sharing with slumbered on oblivious.
The sun was rising over the forest, gold light dappled the floor of the camp. Robin stood near the site of last night's campfire arguing with another man. The other man was huge, possibly the tallest man that Yughi had ever seen.
He was dressed in a hodgepodge of vaguely military garb: a studded leather tunic with heavy shoulders, leather bracers, tall, black leather hunting boots, green leather breeches and a domed metal helmet that looked like a cheaply constructed imitation of an old Roman helmet. A long sword hung at the man's waist and a quarterstaff was slung over his back.
Yughi believed that many men would be intimidated by this giant's stature and aggressive manner. Robin appeared to be taking the man's bluster in his stride.
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"Listen to me, John, listen carefully," Robin said. "No one is abandoning Will Stutely. If I have any part in it the Sheriff of Nottingham will not be hanging anyone today.
"There is no sense, however, in racing forward, waving our swords when it is well known that the Sheriff has pulled in soldiers from Yorkshire, Derby, even as far as Cheshire. If we are to do this then we will use our brains as well as our brawn."
"You've changed since the day we first met," John said. "There was a time when your passions were hot, like mine. Now you play games with people's lives, you would rather think than do something. That is not how these men came to be here, not with thoughts, with actions."
"Maybe," Yughi said, inserting himself into the argument. "I could provide some assistance."
"Who is this?" John demanded, squaring up to Yughi; towering over the assassin and staring down at him.
"He is Yughi, of Brother Tuck's order," Robin said. "And you will show him the respect due to any of our brothers."
"You don't look like a monk to me," John said, his voice dripping with scorn. "Are you like our weak-livered leader, a thinker, or do you have some fire in your guts?"
As John asked the question he gripped the front of Yughi's robe and pushed the assassin backwards heavily, hoping to make Yughi lose his balance.
Yughi was ready for the big man though, he tucked and rolled backwards, coming up off his knees into a forward pounce. He hooked his hands around John's head and used his feet to push back off the big man, forcing the giant to stagger back.
The assassin flipped in the air and landed running. Before John had a chance to react Yughi jumped, rotating his hips and striking John in the side of the stomach with his knee. This forced John to double up in pain. Yughi lost no time. He jumped upon John's back and wrapped his arms around John's neck.
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From here it would be all too easy to choke the life out of his opponent, not something Yughi wanted to do. He applied a fraction of the pressure he would usually bring to bear.
"You wish to test me further?" he said, biting the words off into John's ear. "Or is this demonstration enough."
John gripped at Yughi's arms but the light pressure Yughi was applying was making John's breathing difficult. In a sudden and unexpected burst of strength, John bucked backwards, letting forth a bellowing roar and falling back towards the ground.
Shocked, Yughi felt pain explode in his torso as the giant slammed him into the ground. Yughi lost his grip on John's neck and the gigantic man rolled away, got onto his knees and then stood up.
John stomped over to stand over Yughi, fury in his eyes. Then, in a second, the fury melted. John threw back his head and laughed.
"You're a sneaky one, that's for sure!" he said to Yughi. "I am well pleased to count you as a brother."
With that, he offered Yughi a hand up off the floor.
"Now," the big man said. "You offered to help us recover our own lost friend, Will."
"Tell me what the problem is," Yughi said to John and Robin. "I will tell you how I might offer my assistance."
"The problem is that on a recent rescue mission the sheriff's men surprised and captured Will," Robin said.
"Our brother didn't go down without a fight," John added. "He bested two of our enemies before they captured him."
"Unfortunately," Robin concluded. "The sheriff used Will's actions as an excuse to sentence him to execution, beyond the regular rule of law. The judgement was summary and did not take place in a court of law."
"The circumstances are details, Will is a prisoner of war, this action is no more than escalation," John said.
"You don't understand," Robin said. "This assumption of power over the life and death of other men is something the people of England have fought for, many years since. This sudden reversion to "rule by might" is a terrible precedent, a move backwards for all the causes of freedom."
"The important thing is that our friend is to be killed, the whys and wherefores are no more than details," John said angrily.
"No," Yughi said. "Robin is right. I have seen it myself in the Holy Land. The Crusades began as a means for men of gross religious power to assert that power over those in the Holy Land. The Templars have turned that hammer to their own ends and increased its force. The war for greed and power fails in its own shallow motivation. The Templars make such wars more dangerous, for they imbue base motivations with higher purposes.
"When a Templar takes a man's hands they do not seek to crush his heart, they seek to win it."
"So?" John thundered. "What does any of this have to do with the life of Will Stutely. He must be liberated. Who cares why this should not stand? All that matters is that it shouldn't."
"Absolutely," Yughi said. "But what the assassins have learned in the Holy Land is that there is a time for stealth, then there is a time to make your presence known."
"What are you saying?" Robin asked.
"It is not enough that we merely liberate your brother," Yughi said. "We must make an example of the Sheriff and those who stand with him. We must make him look foolish, powerless. If we are to win the war, then we must undermine not just the Sheriff but who people believe the Sheriff to be."
"And how are we to do that?" John asked.
"By being more than outlaws," Yughi said. "We shall also be assassins, one and all."
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Reincarnated into a dungeon core beneath an island after losing my memories. I don’t yet know what happened to me, why I am here and the likes. But one day I will find out and then I will settle on my next actions. For now, I just have to take care of my little crabs. Warning: the 'Grimdark', 'Gore' and 'Traumatising content' are not there for show. They may not be fully relevant in the first chapters, but they are definitely there for a reason. Schedule: when I feel like it (usually between Wednesday and Friday night). This story is not a really serious work, I will use it to train my writing skills before going back to my other stories (Jezoi, and Vlaryne) that are currently on hold.
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8 188The Moondrop Saga
[A reworking of Coffee & Slime, which I had put on hiatus three years ago] In the darkest parts of the Dungralthis Underworld, an evil calamity that has been brewing for hundreds of years is finally set to unleash devastation and unspeakable horrors upon the land. It is at this time that our Hero is reincarnated into the world- as a slime! What can our Hero do to prevent this calamity from destroying the planet? Is there anything he can do? After all... he is just a mere slime. If he does manage to do it though, it's bound to be incredibly epic. Update: Temporarily put on hold to make edits and learn to use better dialogue tags lmao. Will rerelease all chapters plus more once complete.
8 196The Blessed Princess
Long long ago, there was a time of eternal harmony, when pain and anguish ceased to exist. The world was united as one under the rule of a glorious goddess. But this goddess made a stupid mistake, and chaos rained through her lands. Her people fought and fought, and she lost control over her creations. To sustain peace, she destroyed herself, and her remnants scattered throughout the lands and into the souls of her people. Her last words were to her daughter, the goddess of love, whom she had cherished, "Though I cannot fix the mistakes I've made, I can wish my people to be happy. No more endless pain. No more raging wars. Love, please. Save my world. Restore hope into the eyes of those I've created." She became the forgotten goddess after her world lost its ruler. First Princess Azulia was born a human with a shocking resemblance to the forgotten goddess. Her hair was ink black, and her eyes glimmered like priceless sapphires. Her features were uncanny in similarity to the goddess, even in the way she held herself. Though the goddess's eyes were more like icicles, Azulia's resemblance was enough to make you think twice. Azulia was raised with the mindset that she would be the future Empress of Hydrangea. It was a destiny placed out in front of her and carefully sorted out. Those around her directed her life like a pawn. Until one day, comes the beak of time, and her destiny points in another direction. Azulia must learn to break the tension her family shapes and create a destiny of her own. Her world depends on it, even if it means she must destroy herself.
8 117My love for a Bloodthirsty Prince. [ON HOLD]
Tanya is a girl who never went to China and a girl who was adopted by her aunty. She is a painter. Besides, the paint job she was working in various wartime jobs, but all they were valid for a few days because of unsatisfactory experience. Though she went to her paint job, accidentally she got died and transmigrated into a Chinese dynasty. In there she has got family what she hoped from her previous life. Suddenly, her whole life being fell down into a barbaric prince's hand.Will they fall in love?*******Please bear up to me, if there are any grammar mistake or cultural problem. I just write only for the interest and I have read lots of transmigration story.**********All pictures I get from the net so that pictures belong for rightful owner****
8 151The PageTurners Awards
[JUDGES NEEDED]Does your book lack the recognition that motivates you, or does it not have the fame and glory it deserves? Whatever it is, we are here to help. Unleash your inner confidence and competitive edge with PageTurners Awards 2022.Read on to find out more!
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