[The ladder clatters to the concrete behind him, and the sound is a swoop of relief in his gut. Not today. Not here.
He can't climb and fight at the same time— again, two hands— but a few moments of distraction are all he needs. A brick hits a clean clock right across one of the shadow's faces, their heads all turn— and he takes his opportunity. He seizes the first rung of the ladder he can reach, shakes it to test the balance, and as soon as he's sure he won't fall back on his ass, hauls himself up.
He doesn't know what to expect, once he gets to the top. There's always a possibility that it's a trap, that there will be a wall of thieves or bandits waiting for easy prey, already worn down by monsters. But he gets there. Has to.
He hooks one arm over the bottom of the sill, pulls himself and his maul and all his armor up into the windowframe, and she's... a kid.
That doesn't necessarily mean anything. It's just not what he expected, is all. If anything, it gets him to crack a half-there smile— whether she's bait in a trap or not, she's damn resourceful, he'll give her that.]
Suppose I've got you to thank for this. [He's a little out of breath, but only a little. He waves her back, away from the window.] Give me a minute, will you?
[He stands half-braced in the window, one arm around the top of the frame to keep his balance, and kicks the ladder back down to the concrete, taking any shadows that had kept their focus long enough to try to follow him up down with it.
Hope you weren't planning on using that for anything else, Ellie.]
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He can't climb and fight at the same time— again, two hands— but a few moments of distraction are all he needs. A brick hits a clean clock right across one of the shadow's faces, their heads all turn— and he takes his opportunity. He seizes the first rung of the ladder he can reach, shakes it to test the balance, and as soon as he's sure he won't fall back on his ass, hauls himself up.
He doesn't know what to expect, once he gets to the top. There's always a possibility that it's a trap, that there will be a wall of thieves or bandits waiting for easy prey, already worn down by monsters. But he gets there. Has to.
He hooks one arm over the bottom of the sill, pulls himself and his maul and all his armor up into the windowframe, and she's... a kid.
That doesn't necessarily mean anything. It's just not what he expected, is all. If anything, it gets him to crack a half-there smile— whether she's bait in a trap or not, she's damn resourceful, he'll give her that.]
Suppose I've got you to thank for this. [He's a little out of breath, but only a little. He waves her back, away from the window.] Give me a minute, will you?
[He stands half-braced in the window, one arm around the top of the frame to keep his balance, and kicks the ladder back down to the concrete, taking any shadows that had kept their focus long enough to try to follow him up down with it.
Hope you weren't planning on using that for anything else, Ellie.]