Riding out of Willimet, they remain quiet for some time. Miko is worried about his friend who has fallen into a dark, brooding mood. After the outskirts of town are no longer visible behind them, James suddenly stops his horse in the middle of the road and cries, “That bitch!”
Miko comes to a stop and looks back toward him saying, “Don’t take it too much to heart, James.”
“What? What did you tell me?” he yells, turning his attention on Miko. “Not only was that story a complete lie, but she forced me out of there so I couldn’t even reveal it for the lie that it was. And after I gave her fifteen gold pieces to get a new crystal ball because I felt sorry for her.” Glancing back down the road toward town he yells, “I want my money back!”
“Now just calm down,” Miko says as he brings his horse closer to his friend. “There is not much you could have done, not with that crowd believing everything she was saying.”
James gives him an ugly glare, but Miko continues anyway. “Just why are you so mad? Because you were made out to be a wimpy momma’s boy in front of the crowd? So what?”
James turns his horse around and begins to head back toward Willimet.
Miko quickly turns his horse and rides past, then turns to block his way back to town.
“Get out of my way,” James growls at Miko as he brings his horse to a stop.
“No,” Miko tells him, “I won’t. And you’re not going to go back either, not with the way she had that crowd believing everything she said. You’ll never have the chance to get close to her.”
“Look,” he continues while James listens, “let’s finish what we set out to do. Go and find this temple. Then afterward we can come back to deal with her if you still want.” Seeing James considering his words, he adds, “Remember, we have to make it to the City of Light before Saragon falls and the Empire advances further north.”
James stares at him for a second, emotions playing across his face, then slowly nods his head and says, “Alright, we will deal with her should we come back this way.” Turning his horse around yet again, he resumes their trek east toward Trademeet.
Seeing his friend turn about, Miko breathes a sigh of relief as he gets his horse moving and hurries to catch up. He wasn’t sure what more he could have done had James been set on returning to Willimet.
For the rest of the day, Miko rides in silence while James continues brooding about the way he had been treated and how she drove him out of town. His mood gradually improves and by late afternoon comes to the realization that going back truly would have been the wrong decision, maybe even a costly one.
Sunset finds them still on the road in the middle of nowhere with naught more than grass and low hills as far as they can see. Just before the sun dips below the horizon, they make camp atop a nearby hill.
After supper while they are relaxing around the fire, James hears a rumble off in the distance. “Looks like a storm may be coming in,” he tells Miko.
“Great,” moans Miko as he stares toward the storm on the horizon. Shortly, flashes of lightning begin to appear. “What are we going to do?” he asks.
“Get wet I suppose, not much else we can do,” James says as he stares out across the grasslands. Except for the occasional tree, there is nothing which could be used for shelter.
Pointing off in the distance where two lone trees grew Miko says, “We could take shelter under those trees over there. At least we could stay dry a little bit.”
Shaking his head, James says, “Not in a thunder storm. Lightning can hit the treetops and travel down to the ground where we would be. People have died from being struck by lightning, I would rather get wet.”
Miko looks longingly at the shelter the trees would provide, but trusts in James’ judgment and stays put. “Maybe it won’t reach us until tomorrow,” he hopes.
“Maybe,” James says not sounding as if he believes it. “There’s a good way to tell, though.”
“How?” Miko asks.
“Watch the storm and when you see a flash of lightning, start counting slowly. Stop when you hear the rumble of thunder. Do it every time, and if you are able to reach a higher number the second time, then it’s going away from you. If on the other hand, your count is short before hearing the rumble, it’s coming toward you.”
Miko watches the storm and waits for a flash of lightning. Flash! “1… 2… 3… 4… 5… 6… 7… 8.” Boom!
Miko looks over toward James who says, “Now, if your next number is a 9 then the storm is moving away, if it’s a 7 then it’s coming closer.”
“What if it’s the same?” he asks.
“Then it’s most likely moving across the horizon, neither toward nor away from you.”
“That makes sense,” Miko says and once again looks toward the storm. Flash! “1… 2… 3… 4… 5… 6… 7… 8… 9” Boom! Smiling he turns toward James, “It’s moving away!” he exclaims happily.
“Maybe,” concedes James. “However you should wait a few minutes before trying it again, some storms cover a wide area and the lightning could appear within different areas of the same storm.”
Miko sits anxiously by the fire, counting to himself in-between flashes. “James,” he says after several minutes of counting.
“Yes?” answers James.
“Couldn’t you do magic to make the storm not come over here?”
“I don’t know, maybe,” he replies, “but that would be selfish of me.”
“Selfish?” asks Miko. “What do you mean?”
“If I were to move that storm so it passed us by, then I could also be moving it away from farms that desperately need the rain for their crops to grow. That could cause hardship on people for my own comfort. No, I refuse to influence the weather for so selfish a reason as that.”
“Not many people consider others before themselves,” says Miko.
“I found that to be true where I come from too,” James agrees. “You have to live by your principles, in all things. If you don’t, then there is no limit to how far you may stray.”
“Yeah, I can understand that,” Miko replies.
Flash!
James looks over and can see Miko silently counting till the crack of thunder.
Boom!
“What’s the count?” he asks Miko.
“Still 8,” he replies, looking relieved. “Looks as if it’s going to miss us.”
“Whether it will or whether it won’t, we need to turn in,” James says as he throws a couple more logs on the fire to keep it going further into the night. “We still have a long ways to go.”
Miko settles down in his blanket, drawing it over him as he continues watching the storm. James lies there as well, thinking about Willimet and how Miko probably stopped him from doing something stupid. It isn’t long before Miko begins to snore. He looks over toward the storm, watching the lightning as it flashes in the night, still concerned about it moving this way. Finally, he drifts off to sleep.
The morning dawns dark, the sun unable to pierce the dark clouds stretching from horizon to horizon. They awake to blankets damp from a light sprinkle that fell during the night. Not enough to soak but enough to make everything wet. The thunder storm has long since passed, for which Miko is very grateful. Taking just enough time for a quick breakfast, they are soon on the road.
Shortly after they head out, a light rain begins to fall. They break out their ponchos that they acquired some time earlier in Cardri.
The rain continues all morning, with a kind of an on again off again pattern. The cloud cover remains constant, with nary a break to allow the sun through. A little before noon, the rain begins increasing until it becomes a steady downpour that soon turns the road into mud, and the ditch running alongside into a small stream.
“I hate the rain,” complains Miko. “Can’t we find someplace to wait it out?”
Glancing around at the endless grasslands extending in all directions, James says, “Where would you like to start?”
Looking sullen, Miko hunkers down in his poncho and stays quiet.
With no great desire to stop in the rain, they eat their meal in the saddle, stopping only shortly to give the horses grain and a break from their weight. Later on as the day progresses, James notices what looks to be a caravan stopped in the road ahead. By the number of wagons, it’s a big one.
“Maybe we could ride in a wagon and get out of the rain?” Miko suggests, looking hopeful toward James.
James shakes his head, “They would be too slow and I seriously doubt if they would let strangers in with their goods.”
As they approach the caravan, things begin to look a bit odd. First of all, the wagons weren’t moving. As they draw closer, James begins to see why; none of the wagons have any horses.
“Trouble,” he says to Miko.
“What are we going to do?” Miko asks.
“See if we can render aid, they may have been hit by bandits,” he says as he quickly brings his horse toward the end wagon. “Keep your eyes open and holler if you see anything.”
Approaching the rear wagon, they find the driver slumped over, two arrows protruding from his back. Cautiously moving alongside the wagon train, they make their way toward the lead wagon. More dead drivers begin to appear, either slumped over on their wagons, or lying upon the ground next to them. Near the center of the column they come across twelve slain guards, testimony to a battle which had raged here. Their bodies were hacked and stabbed, many having been pierced with arrows.
Proceeding on, they continue toward the lead wagon where they discover a man who obviously must have been the merchant in charge of the caravan if his fine clothes were any indication. Six arrows protruded from his lifeless body and his lifeless hand still grips the stock of a crossbow. He didn’t go down without a fight.
A smashed chest sits on the ground by the wagon, its top had been smashed open. James looks inside only to find it empty. “Looks like it was bandits that hit them,” he says. Turning to Miko he continues, “Check all the bodies, see if anyone is still alive.”
Moving back down the caravan, they go about the grisly task of searching for any survivors who may require their help. They check dead body after dead body and begin to think that there is no one still alive. It wasn’t until they reach the middle of the caravan where all the guards lie slain upon the ground that Miko yells out, “James, over here! We’ve got a live one.”
Hurrying over, James reaches him just as Miko turns the man over onto his back. It’s one of the guards. A large bump protrudes from the guard’s forehead, which on a cursory examination, appears to be his only wound. Suddenly, the man’s eyes flutter open and he tenses up when he finds James and Miko standing over him.
“We are not going to hurt you,” James says reassuringly. “We are not with those that attacked you.”
“Who are you then?” the man asks.
Gesturing to himself, he says, “My name is James.” Pointing to Miko he continues, “And this is Miko.”
“Name’s Rylin.” Propping himself against a wagon wheel, the man looks around at the dead bodies. “Is there anyone else alive?”
“You are the only one we have found alive so far,” James replies. “It looks as if they took the horses and smashed open a chest by the lead wagon.”
“Damn bandits,” he curses and starts to rise.
“Hold on there,” James says as he tries to keep him down. “You have a nasty bump and need to take it easy.”
Knocking James’ hand away, Rylin climbs to his feet where he wavers unsteadily. He brings his hand up to his head and feels the bump on it. “I don’t care,” he says and then starts walking toward the lead wagon. As he passes by the wagons, he gives the dead bodies a cursory look before continuing to the next.
Upon reaching the lead wagon, he stops when he spies the dead merchant lying on the ground and quickly scans the area. Turning to James and Miko he asks, “There were two women with us, the merchant’s wife and his daughter. Did you see them?” He waits anxiously for an answer.
“No, all we found were dead guards and drivers,” James replies. Miko nods in agreement.
“The bandits must have taken them,” he says as he climbs up onto the wagon and scans the horizon. “Damn, can’t see anything in this rain.” Rylin then collapses into the driver’s seat with a sad, stricken look on his face.
“We could try and find them,” suggests James. “When did they hit your caravan?”
“It was about an hour after we started moving this morning,” he pauses for a second, thinking. “Their attack came fast and five minutes into it, I was knocked from my wagon and must have hit my head on a rock when I fell. After that, I don’t remember anything until I came to with you standing over me? How long was I out?”
“It’s a little after noon now, so probably a couple of hours,” guesses James. “If they took the time to loot and steal the valuables, not to mention the time expended to take the horses, then they couldn’t have left too long ago. Perhaps we could catch up with them.”
“How?” he asks. “The rain has washed away any tracks that could have told us which way they went.”
“Miko,” James says, “go get my compass please.”
Nodding in understanding, Miko races back down the line of wagons to where their horses waited and returns quickly with James’ homemade compass.
“What is that gonna do?” Rylin asks, curiously hopeful.
“With your help, tell us which way they went,” he explains. “Now, if you could find me something that one of the women used to wear, or have with them often?”
“Why do you want that?” he asks.
“If I have something of theirs, it will help me to locate them.” Looking at Rylin and seeing he still failed to comprehend, James adds, “With magic.”
“You don’t look like a mage,” he says.
“I can’t do it without something of theirs,” James says, getting somewhat irritated at the man. “Are you going to help or not? You’re wasting time we can ill afford to lose.”
Getting up, Rylin rummages around inside the wagon and returns with a green scarf. “Sheila, the merchant’s daughter, used to wear this often. Will it do?” he asks as he hands it down to James.
“Let’s see,” James replies as he takes it. Wrapping the scarf around his hand, he holds the compass nestled within it. Closing his eyes he concentrates, thinking of the owner of the scarf and wanting to find her. He lets loose the power and the compass slowly swivels to the south, away from the road and into the grasslands.
Showing it to Rylin he points toward the south and says, “She’s that way.”
“Is she alive?” he asks earnestly.
“It doesn’t tell me that, just where she is,” he responds. “Even if she’s dead, we can still deal with the bandits.” Turning to Miko he says, “Bring our horses.” Miko hurries to comply and soon returns with the three animals.
As he and Miko make ready to ride, Rylin asks, “What about me?”
“Get on behind Miko,” James says, trying to ignore the look he flashes him. Once Rylin has mounted, James turns his horse in the direction indicated by the compass. “Let’s ride quick and see if we can catch them.” Without waiting for a reply, he kicks his horse into a gallop and they race off the road into the grasslands with James leading the way.
The rain steadily worsens, increasing until it’s a heavy downpour and reducing visibility to mere feet. It doesn’t take long before the ground begins showing signs of the bandits’ progress. The grass becomes increasingly trampled and the mud rain-soaked earth begins to show hoof prints. No longer needing his compass, James puts it away and concentrates on the trail before them.
“We must be gaining,” James says when they pull alongside him.
“Yes, I believe you are correct,” agrees Rylin. “How far behind do you think we are?”
“Not sure,” admits James. “Though I’ve never done any tracking before, I doubt if we are very far behind them.”
Not understanding Miko asks, “How do you know?”
Pointing to the trail they are following, James says, “The rain hasn’t had enough time to be able to remove the signs of their passing. Therefore, they can’t be too far ahead.”
“That makes sense,” Miko says looking at the signs of the bandits passing.
“If this rain continues as it is, we may end up riding right into them before we even know they are there,” says Rylin.
“That’s a chance we’ll have to take,” James says. A moment later, he comes to a stop and dismounts for a moment. Scanning the ground, he picks up several stones and places them in one of his pockets.
“What do you need those for?” Rylin asks.
“Ammunition,” answers James, grimly.
“Ammunition?” asks Rylin, “What’s that?”
“When we catch them,” James explains as he swings back into the saddle, “you’ll see.”
Mounted again, they once more set off after the bandits. Another hour passes and the rain continues its relentless downpour. The trail becomes clearer and more distinct now that they have narrowed the gap. Even with the torrential deluge, they have little trouble making it out.
Then, from out of the rain ahead comes a woman’s scream. “Sheila!” shouts Rylin. Kicking their horses into a gallop, they race forward hoping to arrive in time.
No sooner had James reached a full gallop, than indistinct shadows appear before him. Unable to stop in time, he rushes headlong into the bandits’ camp, knocking down two of them before even realizing they are there. As the two bandits hit the ground his horse slams into the side of a tent and the unexpected impact vaults him from the saddle. He hits the tent and it collapses beneath him.
“To arms! Intruders!” sounded the alarm.
James rolls and clears the side of the collapsing tent, gaining his feet. He looks around and sees men running toward him with swords drawn. Reaching into his pocket he pulls out the stones. With magic aiding aim and velocity, one of his missiles strikes the nearest attacker square in the chest. The bandit looks in startled surprise at the hole that appeared in his chest before collapsing to the ground, dead.
Three more men are bearing down on him so he turns and runs, keeping distance between them. He concentrates, then stops suddenly and spins quickly toward his pursuers, casting his flashing light spell. The brilliance of the flash causes them to pause for an instant, long enough for him to throw three more stones in quick succession, taking them out.
“To me!” he hears a commanding voice pierce the air. “To me!”
A clash of metal off to his right signals Rylin’s entry into the battle. Following the sound, he finds the caravan guard hard pressed battling two of the bandits. Using his last stone, he nails one of them in the side, dropping him to the ground. Rylin steps back a moment and glances over to see James, who is but a shadow in the rain. He acknowledges him with a nod and then continues the attack on the remaining bandit pressing him.
James moves in the direction from which the commanding voice had called out earlier. Darting around another tent, he spies a group of men heading toward him. One is covered in armor and wielding a long sword, obviously the leader. They are heading toward the sound of Rylin’s battle with the bandit.
He waits too long and one of the approaching bandits sees him standing by the tent and cries out, pointing him out to the others. The leader yells for them to charge and they surge forward, swords drawn.
Seeing a dozen men bearing down on him, James turns and runs, angling away from where Rylin is battling in the hopes of giving him time to finish his opponent before help arrives.
Another shape materializes out of the rain ahead of him and he prepares another spell. Then he realizes it’s Miko leading the horses and mule.
“Are you okay?” Miko asks before spying the raging, sword waving men emerging out of the rain behind James.
“Get the hell out of here!” James yells at Miko, then turns to face the men. He concentrates on the ground near the leading edge of the attackers and lets loose a massive surge of power just as the men enter the targeted area.
Crrrrumph!
The ground erupts, throwing men, mud and rocks high into the air. James cries out at the pain caused by unleashing so much power at once. He drops to his knees, refusing to give in to unconsciousness.
Surveying the damage through the rain and falling mud, he sees most of the men lie unmoving. From behind the scene of carnage, three men, one being the leader, walk around the crater in the ground he just made. Coming toward him cautiously, the men gain confidence when they see him on his knees.
James grabs a stone from off the ground as he climbs to his feet and faces the approaching men. “Stand back!” he yells, putting more strength and confidence in his voice than he really feels. “Lest you wish to die.”
“You’re the one to die, mage,” the leader says as he continues his approach, a smug smile upon his face. “You can’t have much left in you after that, not if it left you on your knees.”
Coming off his knees through a sheer force of will, James stands straight and tall, praying that his knees won’t collapse on him. “Die then,” he yells and throws the stone at the leader while casting his spell. There is no familiar out-surging of power and the rock glances harmlessly off the leader’s armor. His magic has been all but depleted and the effort to draw on the little remaining to him causes dots to dance before his eyes.
Laughing, the leader says “Take him boys.” His two men come at James as he turns and tries to run away. But his weak legs give out and drop him to the ground. Turning, he sees his death coming at a run.
Thwock!
A crossbow bolt flies out of the rain to strike one of the men in the shoulder, spinning him backward. The bandit cries out in pain as he hits the ground. James looks to where the crossbow bolt originated and sees Miko throwing down the crossbow. Drawing his knife, Miko comes and stands before James.
The other bandit, seeing who it was who shot his partner says, “I’m going to gut you boy. You’re going to die slow and painful.”
Miko stands ready and doesn’t back down. James can see that the boy’s legs are shaking. He’s scared to death, but still holds his ground.
A fast-moving shadow emerges from the pouring rain and slams into the man approaching Miko, knocking him to the ground. Rylin quickly regains his feet and slashes down, catching the bandit in the neck, practically severing his head from his shoulders.
Roaring in rage, the leader rushes Rylin and launches into a series of blows, causing him to retreat in the face of such an onslaught. Rylin successfully blocks the leader’s attacks but seems to be doing all he can just to hold his own.
Hack! Hack! Slash!
It is soon obvious that Rylin is outclassed, the leader is by far the better swordsman and he’s protected by armor.
Miko approaches the battle in an attempt to help Rylin, but only receives a back handed cut for his efforts that slashes open his upper left arm. Out of commission, he backs away from the fight. He tears a strip of cloth off his shirt and uses it to stem the flow of blood coming from his arm, tying it as tightly as he can.
James watches as Rylin blocks blow after blow, never once being able to go on the offensive. The two combatants move around the camp, the leader seemingly able to have Rylin go in any direction he wants simply with the pattern of his blows.
“James what are we going to do?” Miko asks as he comes over, blood still leaking from under his makeshift bandage.
“I’ve no strength left in me,” he replies.
Miko extends his right hand toward James and asks, “Can you use mine?”
Looking at Miko through the rain, James says, “I don’t know what that would do to you. It may kill you.”
Miko glances over at Rylin then says, “He’s not going to last much longer. If we don’t do something soon we’ll all be dead.” He reaches over and takes James’ hand, “Just do it!”
Nodding, James concentrates, envisioning the power flowing from Miko into him and then through him. He looks over at the battle where Rylin who’s obviously exhausted, is having greater difficulty in blocking the leader’s blows.
Suddenly, Rylin cries out as the leader scores along his side opening a shallow cut. The leader shouts in triumph, “Aha!” when he sees the blood beginning to well from Rylin’s wound. Blow after blow the leader rains down upon him, continuously pushing him backward.
The leader maneuvers Rylin back close to the man Miko shot with the crossbow who is still lying on the ground. The man, though in pain, reaches out and grabs Rylin’s ankle causing him to lose his balance and stumble to the ground. The leader sees his chance and raises his sword to finish it.
Feeling the power flowing from Miko to him, James releases it and feels it being sucked out of his friend at an alarming rate. Miko cries out before slumping to the ground unconscious. James keeps a tight hold of his hand so the contact won’t be broken. He directs the power to the upraised sword of the leader, increasing the disparity of polarities between the sword and the clouds above.
Flash! Boom!
A giant bolt of lightning flashes from the sky to strike the end of the sword. The resulting explosion blasts the leader into the air. The bandit on the ground is charred as both he and Rylin are lifted into the air and tossed several feet away.
The leader, when he hits the ground, no longer moves. Wisps of smoke drift upward from his body and a hissing sound can be heard from where the rain comes in contact with the heated metal of his armor.
James checks Miko and is relieved to find that he’s still alive and breathing. He then makes his way over to Rylin.
“What was that?” Rylin asks, a little shaky.
“Lightning,” James replies, a bit shaky himself. “Are you okay?” he asks, looking closely at him.
Rylin looks down at himself and nods, “I think so, is it over?” He presses his hand over the cut in his side to stem the flow of blood.
“I don’t see anyone else but us moving, so I think it is,” he replies.
Helping Rylin to his feet, James says, “My friend is over there,” pointing to where the boy lies in the grass. “He’s out, but alive.”
“Thank goodness,” Rylin sighs, leaning on James for support. “Now, let’s find the women.”
They return to the collapsed tent where the battle started. There they find a lump under the canvas, and it isn’t moving. Thinking the worst, they pull back the tent and uncover a bandit. The man’s neck is bent at a wrong angle, obviously broken, and his pants are down around his ankles.
Rylin quickly scans the camp through the rain but sees nothing other than the dead bandits. “Sheila!” he cries into the rain. “It’s Rylin! It’s safe, they are all dead.”
James looks around as well and soon spies two silhouettes appearing out of the rain, coming toward the camp.
“Sheila!” Rylin cries and runs over to them, James following.
The women, though shaken and upset, seem to be alright. Sheila is wrapped in a blanket and her mother has her arms around her. She has a lost look about her.
Rylin turns to her mother and asks, “Is she okay?”
“One of the bandits was just about to have his way with her,” she explains. “He had stripped her and was about to…,” overcome with emotion, she stopped. Getting hold of herself, she continued. “Then something hit the side of the tent, knocking it over.”
Rylin puts his arm around her and begins to offer comfort when her eyes suddenly widen at something behind him and she looks as though she’s ready to bolt. Seeing her reaction, Rylin turns around expecting an attack but only finds James walking toward them.
“It’s okay,” Rylin assures her. “This is James, he helped rescue you.”
Relaxing somewhat, she says, “Thank you for helping us.”
“You are welcome,” he replies. “I hope you and your daughter will be okay?”
“I think we will,” she says. “It may take some time for my daughter to get over this, but she will. She’s a strong girl.”
“Maybe we should put the tent up again,” James suggests, “so the ladies can have shelter?”
“No,” the mother says adamantly. “We will not stay in that tent. Besides, we need to see about our caravan.”
“How?” Rylin asks. “The horses are gone.”
Shaking her head, she says, “Our horses were taken by several of the bandits to the south while this group continued this way. If we can get them back, then maybe we can bring in our caravan to Trademeet and salvage something from all this.”
Seeing the doubt in Rylin’s eyes, she continues, “With my husband dead, we need the money from those goods to survive.”
“James!” Miko’s cry interrupts the conversation.
“Over here!” James hollers back. Shortly they are able to see him approaching through the rain.
“Oh, you’re hurt!” Sheila cries out when she finally becomes aware of Rylin’s blood soaked shirt, pressed to his side. “Let me help you.” Taking him by the hand she leads him over to the tent and rummages around, coming up with several strips of cloth. Removing his shirt, she inspects the cut and decides it’s not too deep. She then proceeds to wrap the cloth around his side tightly, finally securing it with a knot.
“Thanks, ma’am,” Rylin says when she’s finished.
“That should do for a while,” she says. “Just be careful from now on, okay?”
“Alright, ma’am, I will,” he assures her.
Sheila finds her clothes in the tent and with her mother’s help, gets dressed while everyone else looks the other way.
As Sheila dresses, James says to Rylin, “Miko and I can go after the bandits and see if the horses can be recovered, though I will need to rest for an hour or so before I leave. I pretty much wore myself out during the fight.”
“Perhaps I should go with you as well,” Rylin offers.
“You need to stay with the ladies and watch over them,” James replies. “You can defend them better than either Miko or myself. And we certainly don’t want to leave them alone and unprotected.”
Rylin glances over to the mother who nods her head, agreeing with the plan. “Alright, but how will we know if you are successful?”
“If we are, we’ll take them back to the road and meet you there,” explains James. “Take the horses here with you and if we don’t come back, use them as best you can to get the caravan to Trademeet.”
“Those are not draft animals,” the mother says, looking at the nearby picket of horses.
“Better than nothing wouldn’t you say?” James counters.
“I suppose so,” she agrees, though not entirely happy about the situation.
“Miko,” James says to him, “search all the bandits, especially the leader. See if there is anything that may tell us why they are here.”
“What do you mean?” Rylin asks as Miko begins to rummage through their belongings and inspecting each of the dead bodies.
“The leader seemed too professional to simply be a bandit leader,” James explains. “Also, if they were merely bandits, why did they split their forces and send the horses south? It just doesn’t feel right to me.”
“I see your point,” Rylin acknowledges.
While Miko searches the dead, Rylin and James tie the bandit’s horses in a line, bridle to saddle. Three saddlebags are found to be filled with gold and other valuables.
“This must belong to the ladies,” James guesses when he sees the fortune, “taken from their caravan.”
“Most likely,” Rylin agrees.
The rain begins to lessen though it’s still a constant nuisance. Miko returns from his search and says “Couldn’t find anything on anyone. There was some paper on the leader but it’s ash now, couldn’t make out any writing.”
“Alright, let’s get our stuff and we’ll go look for the horses,” James tells him. “Also, let’s take the tent with us, it may come in handy should the rain continue.”
“Alright, James,” Miko says as he turns to go over to where the tent is lying in the mud.
Rylin, having already assisted the ladies to mount, comes over to James and says, “Thank you for your help in rescuing them.”
“We couldn’t leave them to their fate,” he replies. “I just hope Miko and I are able to get the horses back for you.”
“So do I,” he says. “We’ll wait on the road for a day or so before continuing on toward Trademeet. If you manage to get them, try your best to find us.”
“We’ll find you,” James assures him. They walk over to Rylin’s horse and James gives him a hand mounting.
“Goodbye ladies,” James says as he turns toward them. “We’ll see you in a couple of days.”
As Rylin gets the line moving, the mother says, “Thank you again, James. I can’t begin to express my gratitude for you helping Rylin to save us. Should you ever need anything, the House of Ellinize will help you.”
“Thank you ma’am,” James replies. He stands back a bit and waves as they begin moving northward to where the caravan was abandoned back on the road.
Miko waves to them as they begin to leave. “Everything set?” James asks him.
“Yeah, I got the tent on the mule,” he answers.
“Then let’s go,” James says and then walks over toward their horses.
“What is that?” he asks as they approach the horses. On the back of the pack mule is the tent all right, but it looks like it was stuffed and tied up there without any effort made in compacting it.
He looks over at Miko and asks, “Ever folded a tent before?”
Shaking his head, Miko answers, “No, I’m a city boy.”
James begins to untie it from the horse, and then lays it on the ground. “Here, give me a hand and I’ll show you how to do it properly so it will be a much smaller package to handle.” Having never folded this particular type of tent, it takes him a couple of tries but they eventually get it down to a manageable size and secure it on the mule.
Then they mount up and begin to ride after the other band of bandits.