Overcome by impossible odds?

Robin had her sights set on Highwater himself, and though she certainly knew they were there, her plans didn't seem to properly account for the four burly men that stood between her and her target. As she flew through the air, vicious and ready to strike, the four of them moved into her way, reaching to pluck her out of the air. Robin's face contorted in frustration as she felt four pairs of hands trying to wrestle her from her target, and almost on instinct, her palm full of lighting swung across to smack the closest one in the chest.

There was a powerful crack, and the man was sent flying across the room where he crashed into the wall with a wordless grunt and slumped down to the floor. He didn't get back up.

The other three, meanwhile, were completely unperturbed by the loss of their companion, and worked together to push the squirming girl to the ground. She was no match for their raw, physical might, and her magic didn't seem to come as freely as it had in the celler-like hall. "You idiots, don't you know who he is!? That man--that bastard--has done so much evil, hurt so many people! I swear, if you knew, you'd turn on him in a heartbeat!"

Lord Highwater stepped forward from his position against the wall, gradually and calmly moving to stand over Robin. Becky had watched him during Robin's attack. Even with the massive ball of deadly **** in her hand, he had never even flinched.

"Looks like you called my bluff," he spoke with a calm indifference, not even bothering to acknowledge the singed body of his subordinate. "Though it looks like without your sword I won't even need to suppress you. Your a spell dancer, right? I'm surprised you even managed as much as you did."

His lip pulled back in a sneer. "A truly heroic effort."

Becky might have guessed that he was bluffing if she had had a moment to think. It could be said that real antimagic artifacts didn't really exist any more. Sure there were minor suppressants and the like, but the vast majority of those would barely give a hedge wizard pause. There were legends, of course, of magic suppressing artifacts from days long past, but any that survived to the modern day felt like poor imitations--echoes of their former selves.

Not that much of this mattered with Robin unarmed and pinned helplessly to the ground by three burly men. For a brief moment, Becky considered her position. She was unarmed, outnumbered, and completely outmatched by every single person in the room. Although she hadn't managed to accomplish too much with her attack, Robin's outburst might have been an excellent distraction... if only Becky could have done something with it. Trying something now would be utterly pointless, a humiliating exercise in futility. And so she didn't.

Instead, she simply stood to her full height, stepped forward cautiously and timidly enough to not come off as a threat, and spoke. "So you are in fact Lord Highwater, then?" she asked, keeping her hands crossed in front of her stomach like a wayward parishioner.

The man turned his stony gaze on Becky, cold and calculating. It took everything in her not to flinch and shrivel away in panic.

"Yes. I am Lord Johnathan Highwater, Lord of house Highwater and servant of my Lady Dieudonne," he seemed to stand even taller as he announced his title, and Becky could almost feel herself shrink by comparison. "And you..." he reached into his long coat, pulling out a small note book and flipping to a marked page. "Are Becky Hawthorne, associate of Fuu Teoming, and no one of particularly important birth. You were born in Elmshire, and spent time as a ship's doctor aboard the privateer ship "The Windswept Way," until it's disappearance. Now you are a member of the disreputable band of thieves, cutthroats, and whores who call themselves the Bravos Feminine."

He closed the book, sliding it back into his pocket, and smiling that same dead eyed smile. "I'm afraid you've stuck your noses in a little to deeply this time, my dear.

***

This chapter was co-authored by Shandy (https://chyoa.com/user/Shandy)--please check out his stuff! :)