Marco’s half-sketched
Marco’s half-sketched plan worked better than he hoped.
Harrow rose from his crouch, his soul ringing like a cymbal. He understood at once the boy’s maneuver—it was a theoretical gambit all assassins had considered—but had never once in his violence-filled life seen anyone actually do it. Such reasons the boy must have!
The point of Gianni’s knife sliced into Marco’s palm as he rammed his hand right up to the hilt. The pain split his arm like the lightning that was splitting the sky. Marco screamed and closed his fist around the crossguard anyway, wresting it out of the bigger man’s hand. Gianni’s grip was loose, he was so stunned by Marco’s unexpected action. Then, as Marco’s feet skidded in the mud, he fell forward, throwing all of his weight awkwardly behind an impromptu lunge with his own knife.
Gianni’s screams were a hoarse echo of his own as the knife sank up to the hilt in his gut. He beat at Marco’s head with both hands; Marco slipped and slid some more, and fell to his knees, but held onto the knife hilt, ripping upward with it.
Gianni howled and tried to pull himself off the blade, pushing at Marco. But Marco slipped more, falling underneath the bigger man. Gianni lost his balance on the slimy rock of the trail, falling forward farther onto the knife blade. As thunder crashed, the big man collapsed on top of Marco, screams cut off, pinning Marco under the muddy water
All the air was driven from his lungs as the crazy man fell atop him. Marco tried to fight free but the slimy mud was as slick as ice
Harrow rose from his crouch, his soul ringing like a cymbal. He understood at once the boy’s maneuver—it was a theoretical gambit all assassins had considered—but had never once in his violence-filled life seen anyone actually do it. Such reasons the boy must have!
The point of Gianni’s knife sliced into Marco’s palm as he rammed his hand right up to the hilt. The pain split his arm like the lightning that was splitting the sky. Marco screamed and closed his fist around the crossguard anyway, wresting it out of the bigger man’s hand. Gianni’s grip was loose, he was so stunned by Marco’s unexpected action. Then, as Marco’s feet skidded in the mud, he fell forward, throwing all of his weight awkwardly behind an impromptu lunge with his own knife.
Gianni’s screams were a hoarse echo of his own as the knife sank up to the hilt in his gut. He beat at Marco’s head with both hands; Marco slipped and slid some more, and fell to his knees, but held onto the knife hilt, ripping upward with it.
Gianni howled and tried to pull himself off the blade, pushing at Marco. But Marco slipped more, falling underneath the bigger man. Gianni lost his balance on the slimy rock of the trail, falling forward farther onto the knife blade. As thunder crashed, the big man collapsed on top of Marco, screams cut off, pinning Marco under the muddy water
All the air was driven from his lungs as the crazy man fell atop him. Marco tried to fight free but the slimy mud was as slick as ice