It was another early day for Marcus, today was the day that the caravan would head back to Jakarta. The plan was to meet up at the city's east gate right at dawn. The gate just came into view as he rounded a corner. In front of it were the ten large wagons pulled by two oxen each. They looked like they were loaded down with finished lumber, most likely going back to Jakarta to support its never ending expansion. Roger spotted him and waved him over to the rest of the group. Marcus nodded his head and walked over.
"Just on time Marcus. Now everyone is here, ok everyone gather up and listen." Roger was preparing to give the group their orders.
"It's going to be the same assignments as the first half of the journey. We do have one new addition to our group though. The magician is staying in Clearmount, so we picked up another mercenary to fill his spot, although he didn't do anything anyway. His name is Richard, he is a dual wielding swordsman. He's a little on the young side, but comes highly recommended." Roger said as he introduced the new member of their group.
He was a very young man, maybe only eighteen for nineteen. He was average height with long straight brown hair grazing his shoulders. His eyes were sharp, and had a strong jaw. His eyes were a deep blue, he was an extremely handsome man. He wore brown leather armor and carried two sabers at his hips.
"G'morning everyone, I'm Richard. It's a pleasure to meet you all. I may be young, but I trained with Master Tyrel since I was a boy, so I should be up to snuff." Richard said with a blinding smile that could capture the hearts of many women, and some men.
Master Tyrel was a famous sword instructor. He was very selective in his apprentices and only trained two to five at a time. Anyone that can boast to have been trained by him is worth their weight in gold in a fight.
"Since you were trained by Master Tyrel, why are you guarding a caravan? Shouldn't you be guarding some noble's daughter or the city's treasury?" Katy asked, still somewhat entranced by Richard's smile. Everyone nodded their heads, as if in agreement with her question. They remained silent waiting for an answer.
"The simple answer is experience. Master said I was gifted with the sword, but that would be worth nothing without experience. So I joined the Mercenaries Association, and came across this mission." He said, once again plastering a heartbreaking smile on his face.
Katy and Ellen looked lost in his eyes, both their faces turning a shade of red as their breaths quickend. Both Tim and Ronan cleared their throats, giving Richard a glare.
"Ok, it's time to get a move on!' Roger yelled out, grabbing everyone's attention.
"Richard, you alternate with each two person group everyday. That way you can gain some of that experience you desire. Just one rule, and that is to follow my orders, no questions, ok?"
"Of course, sir." Richard replied with a smile.
"Good. First, group up with Dave and Nick in the front."
Richard gave a quick nod and jogged off towards the front of the caravan. They would be heading out of the city any moment now. Soon, the guards yelled to open the gates, they slowly retracted up into the city walls. Now there was an opening big enough to allow one wagon to pass at a time. The drivers whipped the oxen, and they slowly started to move out of the city, back towards Jakarta.
................................
"So why did we pick up another member? Lucius didn't even do anything on the way here so we should have been fine without another." Marcus asked Ellen as they were walking down the dirt road.
They'd been walking now for about an hour. Just talking about what they did in the city when Marcus brought up the new member.
"I don't know for sure. Probably because the mission called for ten people and the Association just wanted to fill the empty spot. Or maybe the merchants just wanted an extra hand, you never know what will happen." She said, shrugging her shoulders and kicking a pebble down the road.
"Your hammer looks different. I suppose you needed a little more than just some maintenance on it?" Ellen asked, changing the subject.
"Oh yeah, had to replace the whole handle. The head was liable to fly off on the next swing." Marcus said as he slowly swung his warhammer in front of him.
Marcus was very pleased with the steel handle that the blacksmith had made for him. It was a little heavier, which didn't bother Marcus at all. It was also stronger and more flexible, which should allow for a long life for the handle. The holster that came with it was also very nice, it allowed him to carry it on his back and unholster it quickly. It looked like two hooks curving upwards that were placed at the center of his back with leather straps. There were small indents on the handle that the hooks would hold, allowing him to just lift up on the hammer to free it. The only problem was that he couldn't use it with his multi-day pack, so he had his warhammer slung over his shoulder at the moment.
"That'd been awful, as fast as you swing that thing you'd kill whoever got hit by it." Ellen said seriously.
"Good thing you got it fixed."
"Yeah, cost me enough though."
They continued walking and talking, as they made their way to the first rest stop.
...........................….
It was their fifth day on the road, Marcus was at the very familiar position at the rear of the caravan. Richard had tagged along with himself and Ellen the day before. Richard was a very nice guy, always had compliments and always very positive. He was almost annoying with how optimistic he was. This was actually his first mission, so he was as green as the grass growing alongside the road. He did have a lot of technical training though, so as long as he didn't freeze up in a fight, everything should be alright.
They had just left the rest stop and had been traveling only about half an hour when Derrick appeared out of nowhere. He came up right behind Roger, in a sense of deja-vu, Roger yelped out and jumped up in surprise.
"Godsdamnit Derrick!" Roger yelled in surprise.
"Sorry, sorry. I tried not to scare you. It's not my fault you're as jumpy was a field mouse." Derrick said, laughing. Everyone else was laughing to, but were trying to hide it.
"What is it?" Roger said, ignoring the snickers.
"It's just like last time, bandits have the road blocked off up ahead. This time it's different though. They seem more organized, their equipment is better."
"You think they're really bandits?" Roger asked, worried.
"I have my doubts. This isn't the range of the Royal Alliance, but I wouldn't rule them out." Derrick said grimly.
The Royal Alliance were the other super power of this world. They were a conglomeration of eight separate kingdoms banded together against the Empire. They didn't have a very large footprint in the New World, but they were still there. They didn't directly attack, they would dress up as bandits to steal from or just hinder the Empire. There was a lot of competition for the resources of the New World and they weren't shy about using dirty tricks.
Of course the Empire knew about what was going on, but without solid proof, their hands were tied. They weren't the Empire of two-hundred years ago, they couldn't afford an all out war. Running into them was much worse than bandits, their whole purpose was to kill everyone in the caravan and steal the goods. If they couldn't steal them, they would just burn the whole thing to cinders.
"Shit, that's not what I wanted to hear." Roger's face was pale. He had a very bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.
"Everyone, standard formation. Get ready for a fight! They already know we're coming, so there's no turning back now!" Roger gave out orders, placing people in the right places.
Everyone had worried looks on their faces, Except for Richard. He was actually very excited, he didn't know about real battles. He had enough common sense not to act excited, he could read a room at least. Marcus was worried as well, he didn't think that he would have too much trouble, but the others could very well die. His pack was already on a wagon and he adjusted his armor. His warhammer was in his hands as they marched forward and the wagons followed.
The wagons stopped one-hundred feet from the lead bandit. Marcus and his group were in the front with Roger in the middle. They walked a little bit further ahead, then stopped as well.
The lead bandit came forward and spoke.
"Leave us the wagons and oxen, all of it. The rest of you can leave."
The bandit was taller than average with clean cut hair. His armor was taken care of, it almost looked brand new. He held a one handed short sword in his right hand. His crew of bandits also had very well kept armor and weapons. You could tell at a glance that if they were bandits, they would be doing very well for themselves.
"What's the Royal Alliance doing all the way out here? I thought you were ravishing merchants down south." Roger asked, anger rising in his voice. He knew there was no way out of the situation, he was just stalling for time for Derrick to kill the hidden archers.
"Whatever are you talking about? We are bandits, don't you see?" The leader said with a smile, opening his arms wide, turning to look at his compatriots. There were about twelve of them behind the leader. They all carried short swords, most likely standard issued. As Roger would have guessed, there were likely just as many archers hidden in the forest as well.
"Now do as I said, and maybe we won't kill you!"
The bandits took a step forward in unison, like it was drilled into them. They obviously have done this several times before. Some of them were even eyeing Ellen and Katy with lust in their eyes. They most likely wouldn't kill the women, they would keep them alive at least for a few days.
Roger stood still, like he was debating on what to do in his mind. He had to stall for every last second he could. He could tell that the 'bandits' were becoming impatient, so he didn't have much time left. He held up his left hand, palm facing the bandits, and opened his mouth to speak.
"Alright! You win." He said, lowering his hand.
Hearing this the bandits were actually surprised. They were expecting a fight, they knew that the mercenaries knew they weren't bandits, so why would they surrender? Roger was hoping for this momentary confusion. He suddenly stepped back and shouted.
"Nick, Dave, NOW!"
Before he could even finish his words, Nick and Dave had already loosed an arrow each. Caught slightly off guard, the 'bandits' didn't fully dodge in time. The arrows lodged themselves in their targets, one in the shoulder and one in the stomach. Just like that, two 'bandits' were crippled. The 'bandits' didn't take it lying down, the leader shouted.
"Kill them! Kill all of them!"
Arrows came flying from the forest, it looked like Derrick didn't manage to find all the archers. Unfortunately for Marcus, he made the perfect target. One arrow flew past his head, actually taking a chunk out of his ear. Another arrow hit him right in the left shoulder, piercing his armor and penetrating an inch into his muscle. Luckily he was able to dodge the third arrow that came at him. The others either dodged the arrows or deflected them with practiced motions. It looked like there were still six archers left from the number of arrows fired.
The Royal Alliance soldiers cam rushing towards them with weapons at the ready. Nick and Dave fired two more arrows, but they were deftly avoided. Everyone seemed to pair off with an attacker. Roger took on the leader, most likely the commander of the soldiers. Ellen and Katy each took one, Richard had two. Tim took one, while Ronan stayed back protecting Nick and Dave while they took potshots at any opportunity. One soldier engaged Ronan, trying to break through in order to stop the arrows from them. This left three soldiers who decided that Marcus was a huge threat.
Arrows sporadically came from the forest, although it seemed like there were fewer than before. Derrick was still hunting down the enemy archers. The three soldiers had surrounded Marcus, staying just out of reach of his warhammer. They were moving in a circle around him, keeping Marcus on his toes, not knowing where a strike would come from.
A soldier in his blind spot rushed forward and swung downwards in a two handed strike. Marcus had just turned his head and caught the movement from the corner of his eye. Sidestepping quickly, the soldier just missed hitting Marcus in the center of his back. The soldier was carried forward by his momentum and was right next to Marcus. Seeing their comrade in a perilous situation, the other two rushed forward to help. Marcus punched out with his left fist, catching the soldier right in the throat. At the same time he swung his hammer parallel with the ground from right to left. One of the soldiers that rushed to help their friend ducked, the other was too slow and had his head destroyed by the hammer blow.
Now there was only one soldier left against Marcus. Roger and the Commander seemed to be matched in skill. They traded blow for blow and didn't seem to get the better of the other. Richard had managed to kill one of the soldiers he was pitted against, but not without injury. He was currently only using his left arm to swing his sword, his right was bleeding from a deep wound across his bicep.
Tim had just cut the left arm off of his opponent and was heading towards Ellen to help her. Ellen seemed to be on the losing end of her battle. She had deep cuts on her arms, and a small one on her abdomen. Katy was even with her opponent, they both had small cuts on their arms and both were breathing heavily. Ronan had easily killed the soldier that tried to attack him. He was a master with the shield and used it to knock him off balance and quickly slash his throat.
Seeing that they were in a losing position, the commander issued an order.
"Now Malecai! Hit the archers!" The commander yelled pulling back from Roger.
From behind a rock came a large fireball, its searing heat warping the air around it. It flew in an arc over their heads. It was the size of a basketball and was rotating at a high speed. It was heading for Nick and Dave, the only one who had time to react was Ronan as he was on high alert protecting them. Ronan jumped in front of the fireball with his shield raised, hoping to black the magic. When the fireball made contact with his shield it exploded. Flames engulfed Ronan, there wasn't even a scream that could be heard. The shockwave from the explosion knocked Ellen, Tim, and Katy off their feet, along with the soldiers fighting them.
Marcus was far enough away that he was uninjured, he just had a slight ringing in his ears. Nick and Dave were also blown back by the explosion, their clothes smouldering. You could tell that they were burnt from the flames. They both laid face down, unconscious. Katy struggled to her feet, still dazed from being knocked down. She looked over to where Ronan once stood, seeing a mangled corpse that was black and charred.
"NOOOOOO! Ronan! NOOOOO!" Katy screamed, distraught with tears streaming from her eyes.
She wasn't paying attention, the soldier she was fighting had also stood up. Coming up behind her, the soldier stabbed her in the back, running his sword through her. The blade came out just above her belly button. After the soldier pulled his sword out, Katy fell to her knees coughing up blood, holding her stomach. Tim was on the soldier in a second, driving him back away from Katy. He had just killed the soldier that was fighting Ellen, he was faster recovering from the explosion.
Marcus took this moment to finish off the last soldier he was fighting. He quickly swung his hammer in an upward swing, using the pointed end to shatter his legs. The hammer continued, lifting the soldier in the air as he trailed blood and spilled intestines, landing unceremoniously some feet away.
Now there was just the commander, the soldier Tim was fighting, and the mage hiding behind the rock. Richard had finally managed to kill the second soldier he was fighting and was currently catching his breath, kneeling on the ground. The archers had stopped firing arrows from the forest showing that Derrick had finally found them all.
The commander was retreating back towards the rock that the fireball had come from. Most likely to retreat with the mage, seeing that most of his men were killed. No one knew if another fireball was going to materialize. That was a very strong spell, so it must have taken quite a bit of magical power.
Roger was in no shape to chase after the commander. He had injuries on his arms, his left leg had a deep laceration, hindering his movement. Tim had managed to run his sword through the soldier, killing him on the spot. Ellen was putting pressure on Katy's stomach, trying to stop the flow of blood. Katy was pale, her lips blue, breathing shallow breaths.
Marcus took all of this in, he was enraged. One friend of his was dead, burned beyond all recognition. Another lay on the ground bleeding out, with a fatal wound. The others were all injured with varying degrees of injuries, some minor, others not. Marcus dropped his warhammer, what he was going to do, it would only slow him down.
The commander was fifty feet from Roger, about halfway to the rock. Marcus sprinted forward, closing the distance in an instant. Much faster than when he killed the bandit leader. He grabbed the commanders shoulders with both hands. Making him drop his weapon as he was lifted in the air. Taking aim, Marcus threw the fully grown man towards the rock. The commander's body flailed as it was careening through the air.
His body collided with the rock and completely disintegrated. It was like a bug hitting a windshield, blood, bones, organs, it all went in every direction. The boulder even seemed to move a little with the impact. Luckily Marcus was far enough away to avoid the splatter.
From behind that Boulder, a man in a green and brown robe, came stumbling out. He fell on his hands and knees. It didn't seem that he had the magical power left to put up much of a fight. That, or he was just in a panic, seeing all his comrades die.
Marcus wasn't about to stand there and let the man that killed his friend stay alive. He rushed over to the mage and lifted him up with both hands by his neck. The mage was middle aged with black hair and small chin. He kept opening and closing his mouth, like he was trying to say something, most likely begging for his life.
Marcus lifted him off his feet and up into the air. Looking into the mage's eyes while he did so. Marcus could see terror in his eyes. The knowing that you were about to die and there was nothing you could do about it. While the mage could only see malice in Marcus's eyes, unending rage in his cold face.
Marcus began to squeeze, crushing his throat. His mouth was still opening and closing like a fish out of water, as his face turned purple. Marcus squeezed even harder as blood dripped out of his nose and eyes, and the blood vessels burst in eyes.
Finally, as Marcus was still staring in his eyes as the life drained out of the mage, the mage died. Waiting a moment, Marcus flicked his wrist, snapping the man's neck. Then he dropped him on the hard ground like a sack of potatoes. Suddenly, realizing something, he felt ashamed of himself.
Marcus had two bottles of high grade heading potion. It wouldn't help Ronan since he was already dead, but it could save Katy's life. Instead of helping her, he wasted time playing around with the mage. He should have just killed him quickly.
Not wasting anymore time, he rushed over to where Ellen was. She was still putting pressure on Katy's stomach as blood slowly pooped on the ground. He reached into his chest pocket and pulled out a bottle. It was a small bottle, glowing a slight green color. He handed it to Ellen.
Ellen knew what to do with it, so with shaky hands, made Katy drink the bottle. Slowly the bleeding slowed, then stopped. Her breathing became slower, more stable. Katy had lost consciousness, so Ellen gently wrapped her in bandages and let her rest.
Nick and Dave had woken up, and other than a little blood coming out of their ears and some second degree burns, they were fine. Everyone else had treated their wounds, and either limped or slowly walked back towards the lead wagon.
Derrick had come out of the woods right when Marcus was strangling the magician. He had managed to kill all the archers and the one soldier who was shot in the shoulder at the beginning of the fight. He had tried to run off right after being shot and almost made it. Derrick just so happened to find the trail of blood and followed it.
Roger walked over to Marcus. Leaning against a wagon, he started to talk.
"We need to rest. We also need to bury Ronan. You're the only one other than Derrick, that's in good enough shape to do it."
Marcus solemnly nodded his head. He had a knot in his stomach. There wasn't much he could have done to prevent Ronan's death, but he still felt horrible about it.
"Yeah.... I'll give him a proper burial no problem. Should we wait for Katy to wake back up? I'm sure she would want to say goodbye."
"That's a good idea. She needs to say goodbye. Can you just wrap him up in some spare clothes. It hurts to see him like that."
"No problem." Marcus said as he let out a heavy sigh and went about the work of wrapping up his friend.
Soon, Katy woke up, and with Ellen's help, limped over to Ronan's body. She kneeled on the ground sobbing. She leaned over and hugged him tightly. After a moment, she undid the wrappings on his face, revealing black charred skin, and kissed him on the lips. Redoing the wrapping, she stood back up and nodded at Marcus, tears and snot dripping from her face.
Marcus had already dug a hole. It was in the forest a little ways. It was eight feet deep and just wide enough to lay a body in. Marcus dug it extra deep to make doubly sure no creature would dig him back up.
He carried Ronan in a bridal carry and gently laid him to rest. Climbing out of the hole, he said a few words.
"Ronan was a good friend. I didn't know him but these three weeks, but could tell he was a great man, and this world is just a little bit darker without him in it." Marcus said bowing his head.
As he started to shovel the dirt into the hole, Katy fell to the ground crying loudly. Ellen was patting her back, and the rest were standing around the grave paying their last respects.