Cornered Rabbit

Gonyaul took a deep breath, his sense of smell accosted by the burning oil, to help calm himself as the two attackers entered the room. They had not yet laid eyes on him, since there was a broken kitchen island between them; however, it wouldn’t be long he was sure till he was discovered; especially since the dead man was near him and half his body was visibly sticking out like an arrow pointing to his location.

He took a quick assessment of his situation. There was no escape route and even if there was, his speed and agility was now impaired due to the large contusion and guarded muscle cramps in his left quad. He may have been able to hobble off and brace for impact for a fist fight, but his predators both had projectile weapons; one piercing and one blunt force trauma. Both had proven adept at their use, which meant if he made a break for it he would probably get bolted into the wall like a hung picture. There was fire in the room, which added smoke. This made it harder to breathe with the blood soaked wrap and current dust in the air. He was already straining not to cough and give away his position prematurely. In addition, too much smoke inhalation could end up killing him anyway, so he couldn’t stay put forever if they passed him by. He could also tell by their threatening shadows cast on the nearby wall that one had a large sharp looking weapon. He was unarmed and there was nothing nearby to use.

There was also the concern that if it was indeed Voah next door and they did move past him, whether because they didn’t see him or because they killed him first, now she would have two more enemies to contend with. He rifled through brainstorming idea, trying to put more attention on a solution than the insurmountable amount of problems. None of the played out scenarios ended with him alive. If he attacked them, he was dead. If he made a run for it, he was dead. If he stayed put, trying to play possum, he was dead. He probably would have felt worse about his circumstances had he not been hit hard in the head earlier.

Gonyaul removed his robe top silently, revealing his bleached tattooed body. He carefully wound the wool garment like ringing a towel. If he did have to take on a blade, he could use the thick material to parry, block and grab the piece of steel without getting cut. Hopefully he could disarm them. If they were unarmed he had the advantage, though right now all advantages were in their court. He repositioned himself so he wasn’t just sitting. His flexibility allowed for him to keep his left leg straight while crouching with ease, because it hurt very badly to flex the muscles to bend it. He figured bending it would be necessary very soon, but the moment he did he would probably need to cry out in pain and for now he needed to remain silent.