Office Assault, Part 1

Quick jab to the throat and over the edge. One more guard down. If he was lucky, he'd reorient himself in time to get to shore. But that wasn't my problem. I could lament my dubious ways at a later date. Preferably over a bottle of gin.

Three knights stood in the hall in front of the magister's door. Half-plate and swords. Standard issue. Also suggested they had no idea what they were dealing with. Fine by me.

Electricity arced from a nearby outlet, obeying my command. There was a brief outcry from one, but once their muscles clenched there was no more noise. I aimed for unconsciousness, but didn't stop to check. As I approached the office, I briefly pondered what sort of entrance I would make. I really wanted to go for dramatic. However, I wasn't sure what the guard situation was like downstairs was.

Slow and subtle, then. I turned the handle and pushed the door in with my toe. It swung easily on well-oiled hinges. The magister was poring over documents at his desk, as I suspected. He didn't even notice until I was standing right in front of him.

This was entirely too easy. The discharge arced from his lamp and wrapped around his body before he'd even finished registering who I was. Not a sound. I paused a moment to savor the moment. Gloried in the expression on his face. I realized too late that it wasn't a look of desperation, but of glee.

A bolt of force caught me from behind and sent me sprawling. The magister fell to the floor, my concentration broken. I leaped behind a chair just in time to block the next bolt then spun to get a glimpse of my opponent.

“What's new, Gabriel?” Henshaw asked. He was in traditional battle stance, both hands raised and summoning power. “Been a while.”