They find a small stream several miles past the town where they pause to allow Miko a chance to clean off the blood.
While he’s by the stream, James pulls Jiron aside and asks, “What happened?”
Shrugging, he replies, “I don’t know. I heard fighting and by the time I got near, the fighting was over and he walked around the corner.”
When he pauses a moment thinking about it, James asks, “What?”
“It’s just that, when I first approached him, he didn’t seem to be aware I was even there,” he explains. “When I took him by the shoulder and shook him, that’s when he became aware of me.”
They both turn to look at their friend over by the stream. James is worried about him, not sure what happened. Maybe he was just in shock over the fighting, he hopes that’s all it was. But how had he even survived?
When Miko finishes cleaning himself as best he can, they once more mount and quickly put distance between themselves and the town. He’s not sure when it will materialize, but James is positive that pursuit will be forthcoming, and soon.
As they ride, James keeps an eye on Miko but he seems his same old self and soon quits worrying about him.
The hills begin to fall away as they move further away from the town until they finally pass into grasslands once more. As the road starts to turn more to the west, James suggests cutting cross country across the plains in order to maintain a more northerly route. Everyone is in agreement with the idea so they turn off the road, making their way into the grasslands.
As they cross the grasslands, the moon begins to reach the horizon, what light it gave them about to disappear. Once it sinks below the horizon, travel becomes more risky as they only have the light from the stars to guide them. Like ghosts, they move silently in the night, hoping there are no holes or anything else for their horses to trip upon.
Throughout the night, they maintain a quick pace, pausing now and then to allow the horses to rest and grab a bite to eat. When dawn approaches and the sky begins to lighten, they find themselves still in the middle of grasslands. Off to the northeast, the lightning sky silhouettes a range of tall mountains.
“We’re pretty exposed here,” says Jiron.
“I know,” agrees James. “But not much we can do about it now.” He glances back to Miko and sees him asleep in the saddle. Despite being asleep, he’s somehow managed to remain on his horse. James cracks a slight grin at the sight.
They continue on as the day gradually brightens until finally the sun tops the mountains to the east. With the sun comes the heat of the day, James can tell it’s going to be a hot one.
As the sun makes its way up into the sky, they see a sizeable city ahead of them. This one is even bigger than the previous one. It even has a sizeable defensive wall. A small keep can be seen situated near its center. Not wishing to take the chance of being noticed by the men patrolling along the top of the wall, they turn east and move quickly toward the mountains in the distance.
They see many people moving outside the walls but none seem to take notice or even care that they’re there. Suddenly, horns can be heard coming from the city. They turn in panic, expecting soldiers to boil from the gate in pursuit. Instead, they hear answering horns sound from a large force of men consisting of both foot and cavalry approach the city from the east.
Turning south, they gallop until the city and army are no longer visible. They then slow a little to save the horses and again turn more easterly.
“Think that was a force coming back from Madoc?” asks Jiron.
“Maybe,” replies James. “Of course it could be one coming back from a battle with the Kirken Federation as well.”
“Either way, it would be best to avoid that city,” suggest Jiron.
“I agree,” Miko adds.
“We better head for the mountains and try to keep as much distance from those forces as possible,” James tells them.
“Good idea,” says Jiron.
Moving quickly, they continue pushing for the mountains to the east. The mountains continue getting larger on the horizon until they reach the foothills at their base.
“Man, can we stop?” James hears Miko ask in a tired voice from behind.
“Give us a minute or two to find a good spot,” he tells him. “And then we’ll rest until dark.”
Miko nods tiredly as they continue further into the hills. When they finally find a spot to make camp, he gets off his horse and in less than a minute, has laid out his blanket and fallen asleep.
“Never seen him that tired before,” says James. “He didn’t even eat anything, and that’s odd.”
“We have been pushing hard with little rest the past few days,” comments Jiron. Even he is showing signs of fatigue.
James glances over to the sleeping Miko and says, “Let’s split the watch and let him sleep.”
Nodding, Jiron replies, “Okay with me.”
They get the horses taken care of and then build a small fire to roast a couple rabbits that James kills. He is surprised when Miko doesn’t wake up to the smell of the rabbits roasting. When they’re fully cooked and ready to eat, he goes over and wakes him up.
“Tired?” he asks him when he gets up and comes over to the fire.
Nodding his head, he replies, “Yeah, I feel more tired than I ever have before.”
“We’ve been on the go for a long time, it seems,” James tells him. “I think we’re all reaching the point of exhaustion.”
From the other side of the fire, Jiron adds, “You’ve been taking the mid watch as well, which really plays hell on your sleep.”
“I suppose so,” he says. He eats the remainder of his portion of the rabbits in silence, then promptly returns to his blanket and in no time at all, his snores can be heard.
“He could be getting sick,” suggests James.
“Maybe, but he seems okay, just tired,” replies Jiron. “I don’t feel that tired actually, why don’t I take the first watch?” The dark circles under his eyes belies that statement.
James is more than happy to allow him to take first watch. Lying down away from the heat of the fire, he pulls his blanket over him to shield him from the sun. As exhausted as he is, it takes a while before he’s finally able to fall asleep under the heat of the midday sun.
Several hours after James had fallen asleep, Jiron begins to hear the sound of horses coming their way through the hills to the east. He moves to the top of a nearby hill and looks out at the approaching riders.
There are eleven riders, all looking like they just came from a battle. Bandages and blood soaked clothing can be seen on each and every one. They don’t really have the look of the Empire’s men and he lies there upon the hill, watching them as they move closer.
Suddenly, he gasps when he recognizes one of them. He backs down from the hill and begins to move around it as he makes to intercept their path. When the riders are close, he steps out in front of them.
They come to a sudden halt and begin to draw their weapons when Jiron looks at the one he recognizes and says loudly, “If you ain’t the sorriest piece of meat ever to be hauled out of the pit!”
“Jiron!” the rider cries out when he recognizes him. “He’s a friend!” he hollers to his comrades as he gets down from his horse and rushes over. Wrapping his arms around him, he gives Jiron a big hug.
“Easy, Fifer,” he says, “You’ll break my back.”
“I thought you dead!” Fifer exclaims. “How’d you escape the City?”
“That’s a long story,” Jiron replies. He motions over his shoulder and says, “My camp is over that way, would you and your friends care to join us?”
“Us?” Fifer asks. “Who else is with you?”
“No one you’d know,” he explains.
When Fifer’s comrades come over, he turns to them and says, “This is Jiron. We fought in the pits together, the deadliest man with two knives you’ll ever see.” Then he turns back to Jiron and asks, “Is Tinok with you?”
“He was, but we got separated some time ago,” Jiron tells him as he begins to lead them back to where James and Miko are sleeping.
“At least he survived the fall of the City,” he says. Gesturing to one of his comrades, he says, “This here is Miller, he’s our leader.”
Jiron gives him a slight bow, “Glad to meet you.”
“You as well, Jiron,” Miller replies. “Fifer here has constantly told us about the pits and the fighters there. It’ll be good to have you as one of the team.”
James is awake and looking anxiously in their direction when they round the hill. When he sees Jiron smiling and unconcerned, he visibly relaxes and returns the rock to his pouch.
Miko starts awake, at first disoriented but then comes to his senses. When he sees the band of men coming toward them he at first fears attack, but then like James, relaxes when he sees Jiron’s calm demeanor.
“James, Miko,” says Jiron as they reach the camp. “This here is Fifer, a friend from the pits.” He claps him on the back and then indicating the leader of the group, saying, “And this is Miller, the leader of this band.”
“Greetings,” James says. Miko remains quiet, unsure how to take all this. “Just what brings you all this way into the Empire?”
“We’re on the trail of a force traveling south,” Miller says. “You wouldn’t have seen them, have you?”
“As a matter of fact we did, earlier today,” replies James. “There’s a town to the east a few hours away, I believe they were heading toward it.”
Miller and Fifer exchange glances that tell James this news was not what they had hoped to hear.
Turning to Jiron, Miller asks, “Now that you know our business, would you mind telling us yours?”
“We rescued James’ friend Miko here from slavers,” Jiron explains. “Now we’re just trying to get out of the Empire.”
“Why are you pursuing that army?” James asks.
Fifer looks to Miller who nods his head. Fifer turns back to them and says, “Several days ago, there was a major battle between the forces of the Empire and those made up of Madoc’s forces as well as allies who’d come to help.”
“Our general, Lord Pytherian, was captured when the Empire made a bold attack on our flanks. A force of cavalry had cut their way through the lines and before anyone could stop them, had broken through to the command area and taken the general.”
“And you’re trying to rescue him?” James asks.
Nodding, Fifer says, “We must. The alliance is beginning to fall apart without him. Most only joined because he was in command. Without him, the opposition to the Empire in this area will simply disappear.”
“It’s worse than that,” interjects Miller. “Suspicion has been growing that one faction or another had a hand in his capture. If he’s not returned, there may be conflict between the different members of the Alliance as they begin accusing each other of the deed.”
“Join us!” exclaims Fifer. “We must get him back or the Empire will expand unchecked until all of Madoc lies under its thumb!”
“What do you plan to do?” James asks.
“Now that we know where he’s been taken,” Miller explains, “we’ll go to this city and find a way to get him out.”
“Give us a moment,” James says as he nods to Jiron and Miko. Moving away from the others, they talk quietly among themselves.
“We should help them,” Jiron says. “If things are as they say, we have no choice.”
“But we don’t know that it is,” James replies. “We just have their word.”
“Fifer wouldn’t lie to me,” Jiron asserts. “We’ve known each other too long.”
“Okay, let’s say what they say is true,” James begins. “Dare we risk what we carry to help?” He points to the pouch at Miko’s waist wherein the Fire lies.
“I know,” says Jiron.
“What do you think Miko?” James asks.
Surprised at being asked, Miko says, “I say we risk it. The Empire is a blight upon this world that must be hindered in any way.” He says it with such conviction that James is taken aback by it.
Glancing from one to the other, he comes to his decision. “Alright, we’ll help,” James tells them. “But we stick together, agreed?”
Miko nods his head and Jiron says, “Agreed!”
Going back over, they tell them that they’ll help them regain Lord Pytherian.
“Great!” Miller says. “Now, show us where this city lies.”
Suddenly, James realizes that they’ve only gotten a couple hours of sleep and that Jiron has had none. “We should wait until nightfall,” he says. “We are on the point of exhaustion and need to rest before embarking on this venture.”
“Lord Pytherian may not have that much time!” Miller exclaims. “We go now!”
“Then go!” James exclaims with impatience. “You scout around and we’ll show up later, after sunset.”
“That is unacceptable!” blusters Miller. “When you agreed to join my band, you agreed to follow my orders. I say we go now!”
James gets in his face and shouts, “We did NOT agree to join your band, and we certainly are NOT under your orders! If you want our help, you will have to wait until this evening, I’ll not jeopardize our lives because of your impatience!” Standing there eye to eye with him, James can see his face beginning to turn red, obviously he’s not used to having his orders challenged.
James turns his back on him and walks away.
Shhhhht!
He hears Miller’s sword leaving its sheath. Turning around, he sees Jiron has already moved to position himself between Miller and James. The others of Miller’s band draw their weapons as well just as Fifer steps between them.
“Enough!” he cries out. Looking to Miller, he says, “These are allies! And friends! They’ve agreed to help, but even I can tell they’re dead on their feet. As they are now, they’d be little help in rescuing Lord Pytherian.” He looks Miller in the eye as he says in a calmer voice, “They need to rest. We can scout the city and allow them that time. When they’re able to help us, we’ll know better what to do.”
Getting his anger under control, Miller returns his sword to his sheath. A second later the rest of his band follows suit. “Very well,” he says as he turns his attention to Jiron. “We’ll meet you to the east of the city after sunset.”
“Agreed,” Jiron says.
Miller and his band mount their horses again and then head west toward the city. Fifer gives Jiron a shrug and a slight smile as he follows his leader.
“How did he ever get in charge of a band of men,” James says.
“Probably knows someone,” replies Jiron.
“You get some rest,” he tells Jiron. “I’ll take the rest of the watch.”
Yawning, Jiron replies, “Sounds good.” He spreads out his blanket and lies down under the afternoon sun. Both he and Miko slip into sleep in very short order.
As he sits there waiting for night to come, he shakes his head. Another city, more danger. Will it never end?
He took an instant dislike to Miller. Fifer wasn’t so bad, but that Miller, he could definitely do without.
Shortly after the sun sets, James gets everyone up. After a quick meal, they get mounted and then make for the rendezvous with Miller. It takes them a couple hours before the lights from the city appear on the horizon.
They keep to the east of the city as they hunt for Miller’s band, which is quite difficult in the dark of night. The moon hasn’t risen yet, so the only light they have is that of the stars. Off further to the east of the city, they see a small fire burning and Jiron leaves them behind while he goes to investigate.
He doesn’t get too far before they see the fire being kicked out and extinguished. As he returns with Miller’s band, James can hear Miller saying, “…long enough. What kept you?”
“We slept till dark and then it took us a couple hours to get here,” Jiron replies. “Relax, we’re here aren’t we?”
“What did you discover?” James asks Miller when they reach him.
“There are two main gates, one to the north and one to the south,” he explains. “There are also smaller, auxiliary gates to the east and west. Those may afford us our best chance for entering the city.”
“Do they close them at night?” asks Jiron.
“They closed all but the south gate once the sun went down,” he says. “There’s a contingent of guards there watching all who enter.”
“Perhaps someone could sneak in through the south gate and then go over to the east gate and open it?” suggest James.
“With those guards there?” Miller asks.
“Sure,” Jiron replies. “Just appear like you belong and they’ll most likely not say anything to you.” He glances to James and gives him a grin, “We’ve done it before.”
“True,” James replies, “we have.”
“Okay then,” Miller says. “You go in and open the east gate and let us in.”
Jiron looks to James who nods agreement. “Give us an hour once we’re inside,” he tells Miller.
Miller nods his head, “Alright.”
James, Jiron and Miko turn their horses toward the south gate, leaving Miller and his band behind them. Once they’ve put some distance between them, Jiron says, “Glad they’re not coming with us.”
“Me, too,” he agrees. “There’s just something about that Miller that bothers me.”
“Think he’s a traitor?” asks Jiron.
“Nothing like that,” he replies, smiling. “It’s just his personality. It grates on me like fingernails on a chalkboard.”
“What’s a chalkboard?” asks Miko.
“Something from where I grew up that makes a horrible noise when you run your nails across it,” he explains.
“Oh,” grunts Miko.
As they near the south gate, they see many people going in and out. Many buildings spread outward from the gate, inns and other such business as cater to travelers. “How are we going to play this off?” Jiron asks.
James points over to a single story building and says, “Look.”
Hanging around the building are lines with clothes hanging from them. From the looks of it, the building is a laundry. There’re lights coming from the windows of the building indicating someone is still at work inside.
Jiron nods his head as they move in that direction. “Wait here,” he tells them as he gets down from his horse and hands James the reins.
Moving slowly and carefully, he makes his way over to the clothes. After a careful inspection and a quick look around to see if anyone is close, he begins taking clothes off the lines. Once he has his arms full, he hurries back to James and Miko where he passes out the clothes.
They don the native attire and then tie their horses to one of the clothes lines before they begin moving toward the gate. The flow of people in and out of the gate isn’t great, but enough for it to be fairly constant even this late at night.
James notices how the guards will every once and a while pull someone aside and talk to them, inevitably letting them continue to pass through. His pulse starts to race when he realizes they’re doing that. Should they be asked to step aside, they’ll quickly be found out.
When they’re within ten people of entering the gates, one of the guards begins walking toward them. James casually reaches into his pocket and takes a stone out, holding it ready. The guard continues to approach them and then says something. James begins to panic when he feels Jiron’s hand on his arm and whispers, “Steady!”
The man in front of them steps out of line and moves to the side with the guard. Relief washes over James as they continue to advance toward the gate. Giving Jiron a sidelong grin, they pass through the gate and enter the city.