"And how are we supposed to take that girl along with us? Hide her in a bag and go on our merry way? There are gonna be guards in the mines, you think you're the first to come up with that idea?" Dave was livid. Eddie had just come up to him, asking him to help him save some girl they didn't even know, and take her with them, in God knows where.
"We can sneak past the guards, we'll have to be careful but I think it's doable-"
"You THINK it's doable? You're not sure? Have you done any scouting to the place while I wasn't looking?" Dave interrupted him.
Eddie was beginning to understand the situation he had put them in. If they didn't show up on time, they could put the girl in danger, and if they did, they would all be in danger.
"I know I put us both in a shitty position, I know that now. But what's done is done, we need to figure out how to continue from here", Eddie replied, understanding his mistake, but showing no remorse on his face regardless.
"Argh… we're gonna have to cover our faces. I can't even fight, so we're gonna have to make sure I don't need to. Let's go back to the tavern and grab our stuff, and we're coming back in the mines", said Dave, while rolling his eyes. They had to go along with that stupid plan for now. If it could even be called a plan.
Parallel to that conversation, a different one was unfolding in the girl's head.
"What if they catch us? I would be the first to hang, and the two boys would follow. I don't wanna risk their lives for me", she thought.
"On the other hand, I don't have a problem risking my life to free myself. I don't wanna see me wasting away here until I die, and this could be my only chance to escape", a little voice in her head replied.
Her thoughts were going back and forth, but in the end, she couldn't deny that a great chance was given to her. She didn't understand why, but there was light in the end of the tunnel. She didn't have time to collect what little stuff she had. She began walking to the administrative building. Hopefully the two guys would turn up.
Eddie and Dave got their stuff from their room, and promptly dressed up. Dave wore a long coat to hide his injury, and they both hid their weapons beneath their clothes. They both wore scarves to hide their faces, and quickly left toward the mines. Just as they were arriving, they saw the girl coming out of the tunnels, and toward the building.
Two guards were stationed near the mine entrance, heavily armed.
"Fuck me sideways, they just had to show up, didn't they", said Dave.
"We'll get the girl and run", whispered Eddie, his stomach tied up in a knot.
"They'll sound some bell, and suddenly some asshole on a horse will be after us. We're gonna have to kill them. How, I do not know", Dave replied, ready for the worst.
The situation looked dire, but a plan was slowly forming in Dave's head. If he went around the building, he could make some distraction, and Eddie would strike one from behind. It would then be Eddie against the other guard. The odds were against them, but that was probably the best plan.
Dave briefed his friend in just a couple seconds, and carefully went in the direction opposite of the building, but still standing a mere 30 paces from the guards. Eddie went toward the mine entrance, and stopped at the point he could see the guards' expressions, with the girl sitting a few paces behind him. He signalled to his friend that he was ready.
A small rock hit one of the guards on the head, and he instinctively turned around, to see Dave. Just then, he was stabbed in the back of the neck, and everything went black. His corpse fell down with a thud, just as the other guard was turning around to face the new threat that was rushing toward him.
Eddie was immediately forced in the back foot, by the guard. Even though he got him by surprise, their difference in skill was massive, and in strength, abysmal. He pleaded to his friend for help, but Dave could do nothing. Stepping in with a broken arm would be suicidal, and the guard wouldn't fall for the pebble trick twice.
Eddie would need to fall back a bit, and regain his composure. Just as he was backtracking, an opening presented itself for the guard, who managed to slash him in the forearm. It was a surface wound, but it still hurt. He truly thought that all hope was lost. He pulled out the dagger he had found in the woods, which was now glowing a dim blue colour.
He had no idea why, but he ignored it anyway. His idea was that he could use the dagger to block strikes, and his short sword to deliver blows if the opportunity presented itself.
But when he actually blocked one of the guard's strikes, he realised it seemed much easier than before. He tried delivering a strike with the dagger, and he saw the strain on the guard's face as he blocked it.
The fight went on for some more. Initially, Eddie had the first hand, but after a while, the guard adapted to his patterns and forced him in the back foot again. He could hold for a while.
While all of that was happening, Asher, the girl who had been terrified by the fight a few moments ago, needed to do something to save herself. If she stood by idly, she would just end up dead, along with the two boys who had tried to help her. So she just thought of probably the simplest plan anyone could ever think, and started slowly going around and behind the guard.
As the guard was getting more confident in winning the fight, his slashes became all the more fast and determined. Eddie struggled to remain composed, even with the help of the dagger. Slashes and stabs were flying in from everywhere, and his strength had been depleted.
Just then, out of the sudden, the guard drops down, unconscious. Behind him, the girl with a now bloodied stone in her hands, and a shocked face.