The day of the scheduled attack had arrived. Kail stood alone on the wall, atop the gate they knew the bandits would come from. There was a staircase nearby leading to the inside of the wall, so Kail could quickly get to cover. They came, slowly and calmly riding their horses towards the village. Some of them held torches, despite the day being bright and clear. Kail realised they were for lighting their arrows. They stopped a safe but audible distance once they saw Kail.
“Where’s the priest?” one of them shouted. Kail recognised him as the one James had told them about. The new leader; Bate Law. He had one eye and a huge battle-axe slung over his back.
“We have one of your men prisoner.” Kail shouted back, ignoring the question. “If you promise to leave this village alone, then we’ll return him to you.” Kail knew it wouldn’t work, and he knew even if they did return James to them, they’d likely attack anyway. But he wanted to offer them the formality anyway. Law ignored the question, and the group started to spread out. They’re about to attack Kail realised as they started to light their arrows from the torches.
He retreated down the stairs to the inside of the wall. Then he heard the whoosh of arrows flying over above. He rushed past Yiannis, who was also on the stairs, as well as a girl Yiannis had found amongst the villagers whose hobby it was to steal a bow and arrows from the guards and practice archery. Yiannis had asked around and found her, although her parents hadn’t wanted to let her fight. Yiannis had managed to convince them… although Kail had decided against asking how.
“Get ready” he whispered to them. He reached the bottom of the stairs and opened the wooden door. He glanced out and watched as the storm of arrows finished. Just like they’d planned, none of the buildings caught fire. It had been a trick that Kail had learned from his father, who had also dealt with bandits in the past. It was simple enough. If something was wet then it wouldn’t burn. They had soaked the roofs of all the buildings as much as they could so that no fire would spread. The village had a plentiful supply of water in the form of a well, so they had had more than enough. They must really be confused by now. He then knocked on the doors of the nearest houses to the gate, signalling to the people inside that it was safe to come out. The doors opened, and men and women flooded the main street, all of them armed. They then disappeared, like ants disappearing into an ant hill, except they disappeared up the side streets, lying in wait and hiding, weapons at the ready.
At that moment the bandits should be regrouping in front of the gate, and James had told them that they’d likely be attacking in one big group, rather than splitting into two and attacking from both sides. He was proven right, although Kail couldn’t help but be shocked by the sudden sound of the gates being ripped off their hinges. Looking through the open archway Kail saw that they had tied the gate with ropes to several horses and charged away from it, ripping it off. Kail waited for them to gather together.
“CHARGE!” came the shout from one of them, and they rode straight through the arch where the gate had been. Kail was on one side of the arch at that point, and one of the villagers was opposite him on the other. They cut in tandem two ropes that were keeping down a trap they had laid. That idea had been from Yiannis. Up sprang a framework of wooden spears from the ground. Confused shouts filled the air accompanied by shrieks from the horses. Several of them rode straight into them, causing bandits to vault off their seats as the horses impaled themselves onto the spears and came to a sudden halt. They landed hard on the ground, past the trap.
Then the villagers immediately ran out from the alleyways with their swords and axes to mob the helpless bandits, immediately and brutally ending their lives. Kail couldn’t take his eyes away, surprised and sickened by the sudden violence from the people he was trying to help. He shook his head clear of such thoughts. Now is not the time. These people had been terrorised by these bandits. He couldn’t be surprised at the way they acted when they had the chance for justice. Is this justice? He sighed. He’d think about later. He needed to concentrate on the scene in front of him, although he almost regretted looking back as the first thing he saw was one of the horses rear up in fear as it came through the broken gateway and send its rider’s head slamming into the stone wall with a sickening crunch. The man went completely limp and fell from his saddle.
“Fall back!” came a shout that Kail recognised as Law. The bandits retreated from the entrance. It’s going on our favour so far Kail thought. That was when Yiannis and the girl he was with rose from the wall, along with four other people, each spaced out along the wall, that Yiannis had had the girl attempt to train to use the other bows. They started to shoot arrows into the midst of the bandits. With only five arrows at a time it wasn’t too effective, with many of them unlikely to hit their mark, being fired by people who hadn’t had anywhere near enough practice to get any good with them, but it did serve to anger and confuse them. Yiannis made a gesture with his hands and the archers crouched back down as arrows were fired back at them in retaliation. Kail was expecting them to abandon their horses and attempt to make their way over the wall using grappling hooks like the group that he had first encountered, but instead they found a much more intuitive use for their hooks. They rode close to the entrance and threw their grappling hooks at the wooden spear trap that had been raised to ward them off, then once several of them had a hold they rode away, tearing the trap to pieces. The entrance was open.
“Spears!” Kail shouted before retreating into one of the streets off the main road. He stood there with a group of villagers who grabbed the simply-made spears, wooden shafts with a metal tip, that they had left in position. The bandits rode through. Kail waited and waited… then shouted “Now!” and signalled for the group he was with to stride forward with their spears. The group opposite them did the same, and they speared bandits straight off their horses. The main purpose, however, was to split up them up. Kail watched as the group they had let through carried on riding down the main road.
The villagers outnumbered the group they had surrounded more than two to one, and they closed in with spears, viciously stabbing at the invaders. They took out a lot of them, with some turning around and fleeing back through the entrance. Whilst this was happening Yiannis’ group shot arrows over them, aiming for the bandits that had already made it past and were turning around to attempt to help their comrades. The arrows that fell around them caused them to split up even more, desperate to escape the main road.
For that moment they had a reprieve. Yiannis called the archers together and took them along the wall, with the intent of shooting any bandits they found. Kail, meanwhile, took to organising the armed villagers left into two groups. They had grouped up the people who couldn’t fight, or who were too young or old to fight, and had packed them all the houses closest to the gate, so that they could defend them. Kail knew they had to keep at least half their forces there, but that they also had to hunt down the bandits. He would take the other half to chase them down.
As Kail scanned the faces of the people there he realised someone was missing: the blacksmith, Brom. Where is he? He rushed into the houses, checking with those inside. Neither Brom nor his apprentice, Dane, were there.
“Damnit.” Kail couldn’t help exclaiming. “Keep to the plan!” he shouted to the few om the group who were wearing armour, the ones who had the build to wear it and had taken well to learning how to fight. Most of them were the village guards. Kail then ran off towards the smithery, hoping to find Brom and Dane there. He looked up the side streets as he went, seeing some of the bandits trying to regroup. One of them saw him, alone, and a savage smile appeared on his face. Before he could ride towards Kail, however, some arrows rained down from the sky at him. They missed their mark, but they had caught the bandit’s attention, and so Kail continued on.
He arrived at the smithy to find the forge still blazing. Was he trying to finish another weapon? he wondered. He made his way cautiously inside, hearing voices from within. The door was ajar, and so he slowly pushed it open. The first thing he saw was James, untied and holding a sword that was still glowing slightly red. He was talking to another bandit.
“This will do.” James was saying, looking at his sword with a greedy smile. “Do you think Law will win this?”
“Hell no.” the other one answered. “These ‘simple villagers’ have already taken out half our number. We should’ve stuck to mugging merchants and supply wagons. Grab the kid and we get out of here. I know some people we can sell him to. Remember that troupe that goes around trading slaves?” That was when Kail noticed Dane. He was tied up on the floor. Next to him was… A motionless body. Brom. There was a pool of blood underneath him. He was dead. Kail froze.
Then James noticed him. A malicious grin spread across his face.
“Kail." he said. "Thank you for keeping me alive, but it looks like I don’t need your help anymore.” he said, brandishing his sword. He took a menacing step forward, but Kail's mind was still blank. His hand unconsciously went to his sword, and he took a step back. Somehow the scene looked familiar. It reminded him of something. Something he didn’t want to remember. James’ friend looked at Kail, a thoughtful expression on his face.
“Maybe we should sell him instead. He has a unique look, with that weird hair. I’m sure we could get more money for him.” he said.
“I reckon we’ll have to kill this one.” James answered. “He’s one of the mercenaries. He's the one who taught these villagers how to fight. More to him than meets the eye. Besides, the kid is smaller. Easier to carry. Selling any slave will get us a good enough price to last awhile.”
Slave. The word echoed in Kail’s head. It seemed to awaken something within him.
Kill them.
*
They kept firing arrows over the buildings at bandits they could see. Then Yiannis had seen Kail running along the main road alone. That didn’t bode well. Then he had spotted a bandit that looked Kail’s way and seemed to be about to head down there to attack him, so he had signalled for his group to shoot arrows that way to distract him. None of them hit their mark, but they caused the bandit to find cover. He then took his group along the wall so he could see what had become of Kail.
Some of the bandits, however, started to use their grappling hooks to climb the wall and attack Yiannis’ group. The archers shot arrows at them but none of them hit their mark; none except one. The girl who Yiannis had found managed to shoot an arrow into one of the ropes, sending the bandit falling to the ground. Others made it onto the wall, brandishing their weapons. It was Yiannis’ turn to contribute the way he was most comfortable with. He ran towards the bandits, flinging knives at them, which hit true. He then unsheathed his weapons; one short sword and a dagger. He feinted a lung at the nearest bandit, causing him to swing forwards with his weapon. Yiannis held back, then jumped in, perfectly stabbing his sword through the bandit’s throat. Then he pushed him off the wall.
He didn’t have time to see the poor man’s fate. He parried the next bandit’s axe, pushing it to the side and stabbing him in the eye with his dagger, causing him to yell out in pain and take a step back. The next bandit stepped forward, swinging wildly with his axe. Yiannis jumped back. An arrow flew past, burying itself into the bandit’s shoulder, causing him to stop in surprise. Yiannis took the chance presented to him, slicing the man’s throat with his sword before stabbing the now one-eyed bandit, then throwing both of them off the wall as well. Then his group were safe.
“Thanks for the assist.” Yiannis said to the girl with the bow. He looked down over the city, and the smithy caught his eye. Could Kail have been heading there? He had been heading in that direction. Then the question was answered as Kail emerged from inside, covered in blood.
*
Kail grabbed Dane by the arm and ran as fast as he could, taking them around a corner as the bandits pursued them. There were more traps for the bandits, and Kail lured them into one. Kail and Dane jumped over a certain spot of ground and carried on running. The three bandits followed, not knowing what awaited them. The horses shrieked and fell to the ground as they ran over wooden spikes that had been stuck into the ground, stabbing into their legs. Amazingly, their leader, Law, managed to jump off and land safely. The other two weren’t so lucky. One shouted out in pain and couldn’t get up. The other went completely silent.
“This wasn’t meant to go this way.” Law said angrily, pointing at Kail with his axe. “Even if I end up being the last one left, I will kill everyone here. Starting with you.”
Kail knew he would have to fight. He had his sword ready. “Stay behind me” he said to Dane. Law towered over him. He was easily six feet tall, probably more so, and he had the frame to match it. Kail was sure he was strong enough to wield his axe with deadly proficiency.
Kail stepped forwards, wanting to keep Dane a safe distance away from the fight. Law raised his axe and stepped in, swinging his sword horizontally. Kail tried to step in, using his sword to block the blow, but the strength behind it immediately pushed him off balance, and he ended up on the floor. Kail heard laughter was Law swiftly raised his axe back up and swung it down towards him. Kail managed to get his feet beneath him and his sword up to attempt to block it again. He didn’t fall to his feet, but he was forced to step back, and his hands were already going numb from the impact. With the wall behind him, he had to sidestep around Law, who had a confident smile on his face. Law was then between Kail and Dane, and Kail realised he was between Law and the bandit on the ground. He glanced behind himself, seeing that the bandit was still on the ground, holding his midsection in pain, seemingly in no position to help his leader, thankfully.
Let me fight him came a voice. Kail looked around, but no one was there. Me, you fool! came the voice again. Kail vaguely recognised it, and suddenly the buildings around him dissolved, and the ground and the sky glowed a dazzling shade of blue. The distance was obscured by fog, and he recognised the person in front of him.
Ulric? Kail asked.
Aye. the spirit said. You’re fighting Law. I’ll help ya out. I’m not surprised he ended up taking charge… but he’s the bad sort. Well I guess that’s why I had him in my troupe, but he’s the bad type. He shouldn’t be in charge. And he’s always fancied himself stronger than me. Gimme the chance to teach him who’s better, even in death.
Kail didn’t seem to have a choice. Before he even knew it, the world was back to normal, and he was looking through his own eyes, but he had no control of his body. He moved with a decisiveness that Kail had been lacking. He moved back to the bandit on the floor and turned to him.
“Sorry about this, Tybett” he said. Then he plunged his sword into the bandit’s throat, to both Kail and Law’s surprise. He took the axe from the man’s hands as he died. He then took a confident step toward Law; sword in one hand and axe in the other.
“Law” he said. “Time to show ye who the strongest really is.” Law furrowed his brow in confusion, perhaps recognising the accent, but the voice and most definitely the appearance did not belong to Ulric.
“Obviously me.” Law responded, and he stepped towards Kail. It was a surreal feeling as Kail watched an axe swing towards his head, unable to move out the way. He felt like he was certain to die, until his body moved at the last second, under Ulric’s control. He lunged forwards with the sword, trying to stab Law. He manged to graze through Law’s leather armour as he twisted his body to the side. Then he followed up with his axe relentlessly. Law, however, brought the pommel up into Kail’s face. Ulric’s axe did imbed itself into Law’s side, but the force of the pummel in his face halted his momentum. Ulric kept hold of both weapons and jumped back, readying himself for the next attack. Law was wincing in pain but he stood tall still.
Your body is small and weak, but I think I can pull this off came Ulric’s voice. He raised both weapons up as Law came at him swinging his axe down. He caught the axe between his two weapons and brushed it to the side, then swung his axe into Law’s arm, causing him to shout in pain and drop his battle-axe. Ulric then let go of the axe, holding his sword in both hands and bringing it up to decapitate Law.
NO! Kail shouted internally. He could feel his body again, and he could feel Ulric’s spirit inside him. It was a strange sensation, as if he was tied up and trying to struggle against it, but instead of a rope it was the soul of another person. He tried to will Ulric’s control away, as hard as he possibly could, like he was pushing someone else’s thoughts out of his own head. Fine. he could heard Ulric’s voice say. Do what ya want. I proved what I wanted to anyways. Then the presence was gone, and Kail was in control again. A boot to his chest brought him back to reality. He went down to the floor and rushed back to his feet to see Law picking up his battle-axe, although he could only use one arm.
“You’re a strange one.” Law said, obviously confused as to why Kail hadn’t killed him. “You’ll regret wasting that chance.” He swung his axe again, but he lacked the speed and power he previously had. Kail managed to back away out of the range of his swing, then moved in and sliced Law’s shoulder. Law swung again, but Kail was ready. He had a grasp of Law’s range. He managed to move back just the right amount and raised his sword high, bringing it down with all his strength on Law’s hand, cutting it clean off. The axe hit the floor with a loud clang, and Law dropped to his knees, looking at where his hand had been and screaming in pain. Kail took the opportunity to close in and hit Law in the head with his pommel, knocking him unconscious. The fight was won, and even though he had cut his opponent’s hand off, he hadn’t killed him.
*
Yiannis had found the bodies in the blacksmith’s. James, the bandit they had captured, as well as another bandit, and the blacksmith himself. He had asked the child, Dane, about it, who was very upset over the blacksmith’s death. Dane had said that the bandits had killed Brom, and then Kail had killed the bandits. Yiannis had then asked Kail about this, yet Kail didn’t seem to recall any of it, making Yiannis suspicious. White hair, white eyes, the ability to “speak to spirits”, and an attitude against killing yet apparently being able to kill and then forget about it. There was definitely something at play that Yiannis didn’t know about. Hopefully it wouldn’t be his problem though. Yiannis quietly drank and kept to himself, although people kept thanking him. Kail was much friendlier and more polite, although Yiannis noted that he seemed more tense around the older people who came to talk to them, and only eased up around the villagers closer to his own age. Yiannis, meanwhile, felt like he had done more than enough. He didn’t want to waste his effort being polite. He simply wanted to relax with a drink and then leave with his money as soon as he could.
They would end up leaving the next day, with two of the guards from the village to help them take their prisoners, and a letter from the Mayor explaining what had happened. Then Kail and Yiannis left for Yamato, to finally go home. When they got to the city they separated, although they did exchange a handshake. They had learned a lot about each other during their stay at Eastthorpe. Yiannis still wasn’t completely sure why he had stayed. Perhaps he was going soft. Kail, meanwhile, had become convinced that Yiannis could possibly be a good person, deep down. After dropping off his belongings at his home, and changing clothes, Kail went to Anima to report the success of his job.
Quinn nodded in approvement upon seeing Kail at his counter again.
“Mission successful” Kail said joyfully, although there was certainly a sense of tiredness to his voice. He looked forward to sleeping in his own bed again.
“Well done” Quinn said. “What about Yiannis?”
“He’s not here yet?” Kail asked. Quinn shook his head. “He’s fine. Me and him both helped the village and defeated all of the bandits. He came back with me. They paid us. All went well.”
Quinn nodded. “Alright then. I’ll make a note of it. Just let me know when you want another job.”
As he moved to leave to get some rest, a thought occurred to Kail. “Has Kin come back yet?” he asked, having not seen his elusive housemate yet.
Quinn shook his head. “Not yet. He’s been gone a while, but then that doesn’t mean anything.” he said, seeing the worried look on Kail’s face. “Any job could take a long time depending on how it goes.” Even so, Kail was still worried. Kin was the person who had introduced him to the guild, and was possibly his only friend. Unless me and Yiannis are friends now? he wondered.
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