A Rough Awakening

The blade whistled past John's neck, slicing the tip of his hair, but before John could react, a kick connected to his abdomen, sending him crashing into a tree.

"Fuck," John cursed under his breath and coughed up blood. He stood up and looked up, staring at Celeste with narrowed eyes.

Celeste's gaze was cold and emotionless, her hands gripped the handle of her short sword and her posture was taut like a coiled viper ready to strike at a moment's notice, John cursed under his breath. She was good.

"What happened to our chat?" John spat and raised his hands in mock surrender, Celeste didn't reply, her gaze remained cold and her face stern and serious.

John gritted his teeth and wiped the blood from his lips. Celeste didn't wait for him to recover, she launched a series of attacks and slashed at him, but her blade hit the blurred air as John's figure vanished from her sight.