The snake changed as quickly as he had fallen. He goaded Cruran, then charge madly forward. This was no rage fueled assault to reclaim his pride before his men... this was attack -- this was an intent to kill like he knew the final stroke was soon to come, like the wolf charging the injured calf. But the barbarian was no calf, and he was not so injured.<br/><br/>Cruran raised his blade, black and scarred from years of endless battle. He met the charging bandit's fury with a sullen stare, holding himself at bay like a hunter the hungry wolf. Every step of the bandit's boots against the stone tightened the cords of muscle across his arms, chest and back. Then, as the bandit drew his blade for a single powerful stroke Cruran set loose his fury and bounded in a single step forward, drawing his blade and heaving it to meet the bandit's.<br/><br/>For one moment of blood fury, the steels connected and sparks sprayed from the clash, and the blades wrenched against one another. Cruran roared against the conflict as the blow shook him and for but that moment, they two titans were locked. But then an unfamiliar sound, metal screaming and wrenching, Cruran felt his arms give as as his sword snapped, the old blade at last meeting its end beneath a blow its worn form could not recover from. The chasind man had but an instant to react, to divert before what was left of the force the bandit had struck with passed his blade as it separated in two and sent him to the same fate. Cruran rolled his shoulder, using his forward momentum to push himself forward, half stepping in a spin away from the point of impact. But it was not enough.<br/><br/>Cruran felt an eruption of seering pain across his shoulder blade as the bandit's sword just grazed him as he spun. The world flashed white then black for the briefest instant and the barbarian's roar turned to pain and he tumbled to the ground. Rolling painfully across the stone before instinct caught him in a crouch -- but the pain had the world spinning about him. Cruran barely had time to see bandit turn and swipe again before he had to madly dive away to keep from being killed.<div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>