The silvery ropes from the temple bit her skin as she struggled, completely unable to free herself. Taria sat in a wooden chair, tied up, gagged, and being harassed with questions about a moonstone.
Dressed still in her knee high leather sandals, tight green short shorts, matching sleeveless shirt, leather belts and pauldrons, belt, leather armlets, a green bandana on her forehead wrapping around her shoulder length, blue hair with the bangs still covering one of her bright purple, intense eyes, Taria was every part a warrior but still remained the captive of a ruthless mercenary.
The ropes, silver in colour, began at her ankles and wound their way up her calves to just below her knees. Another coil started above the knees and stopped high up on her toned, shapely thighs. One other coil ensnared her arms and torso, pinning her arms to her sides tightly from the elbows to the shoulders. The final coil of the silver rope kept her hands bound behind her back where she was forced to sit in the chair. Thick, brown rope had been used then to attach to her lower legs and pull her feet back so they dangled helplessly beneath the chair, tied off tightly to the coil of ropes on her upper body. Another went over her lap, securing her to the seat while two more held her waist and her torso to the back of the chair.
Taria was also gagged though the strange rope coil from the temple had been replaced with something that silenced her completely. Lila, the big mercenary currently holding her, had procured a stash of rubber ball gags to silence her prisoners and found one that matched Taria’s blue hair and strapped it on tight into her mouth.
A white cloth also hung around her neck, once covering her mouth and nose and making it hard to breathe but also further silencing her. Lila had pulled it down for the time being to hear the woman’s voice, though she still didn’t want Taria speaking.
“You’re only making this difficult on yourself,” Lila said. “It’s really very simple. I ask if you know where the moonstone is, you tell me the truth and say yes, and I’ll think about taking the gag off. Sound good?”
“Ghhh dghhmnnt kngghhwww!!” Taria mumbled behind the ball gag. She felt a bit of her saliva drip down onto her chest but simply ignored it, glaring at her captor.
Lila closed her eyes and held the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger, sighing deeply. “Taria... You’re trying my patience. Tell me the truth. I know why you were in the temple. I knew you’d get caught by the guardians there. I’ve done my research. They needed time to recharge whatever magic drives them. So, using that window of opportunity, I followed in behind you, knowing even you wouldn’t be able to fight them. And I was right. What I didn’t expect, however, was to find an empty damn pedestal where the Paragon Moonstone should have been!”
Lila bent down and grabbed Taria’s hair, forcing her head back and staring down into her eyes. “Where is it!? You know where it is, don’t you!?”
The pain of her hair being pulled was irritating, and Taria hated pain, but she knew how to take it when she needed to. Ignoring it, she spat out her answer from behind the ball gag. “Nnghh! Ghhtph thggh trghhmph!!”
Taria tried to shake her head and the huge woman looming over her let go of her hair and stepped back. “Still you say no to me? Still you lie? What did you do with it? You must have hidden it! Or did you use it? You used it, didn’t you!? You made it disappear! That’s what you did, isn’t it!?”
“Nghhh! Ghh... dghhmnnt knghmmw wghhr ghhtt ghhss!”
“Stop lying to me! You know where it is! What, did your new bandit troupe hide it somewhere for you!?”
Taria shook her head again. “Nnnghhh!”
Lila felt herself losing her temper again but she held it in check. She took in a deep breath, stepped back, and calmed herself down.
“Okay... Let’s try something else. You went in there alone, right?”
Taria took a moment to think about the answer. She didn’t see Arys and Celia... they... no. They were captured right beside me. That means... they must have escaped! They must have the moonstone!
“Hey!” Lila said, snapping her fingers. “You in there, blue?”
Taria almost chuckled. Blue. Her old nickname for me. I don’t miss those mercenary days with her...
“Answer me, damn it!”
“Yghhmmph...” Taria said, doing her best to sound convincing behind the gag in her answer.
Lila let out a short breath. “Good. You went in there alone. Which means... you must have seen the moonstone, right?”
Taria thought about her answer. If lying would keep Lila calm, perhaps she would finally have her gag removed and be able to ask some questions of her own. And maybe even get some answers...
“Yyghhmph,” Taria said, nodding.
“So then... what did you do with it? Did you hide it?”
Taria didn’t want to put anyone in danger. So she tried her best to think of where she would have hidden the moonstone if she had seen it.
“Yghmmph.”
With a sigh of relief, Lila reached down and unbuckled the ball gag, finally pulling it from Taria’s mouth. “Now... tell me where.”
Taria caught her breath and cleared her throat. “There’s a vault. In the Dasi Forest. It’s a couple days walk from the Order’s headquarters. Artema hid something there once. It’s where sent it.”
“Sent it? How did you send it there?”
“Lanala taught me a teleportation spell,” Taria said, hoping all her practice playing cards with Meryn would help her bluff well enough to fool Lila. Luckily, Lila was desperate enough for answers to believe just about anything.
“So you knew we were onto you and that you couldn’t fight those guardians.”
“Yes on both counts,” Taria said, still lying through her teeth. She and the others really hadn’t known Lila was following them. Taria was more shocked than anyone when Lila barged in and found her, bound and gagged by the guardians.
“I swore we covered ourselves up perfectly...” Lila said. “How could you have seen us?”
“Maybe you’re not as good as you think,” Taria said. She realized then that she had gotten pretty good at bluffing as Lila scowled and glared at her, brandishing the ball gag again.
“Don’t push me, blue...”
“Fine... but just tell me... why do you even want the moonstone?”
“The same reason you want it,” Lila answered. “Power.”
“What power?”
“You must have heard the rumours. Why else would you be after it? You want that power. And so do I. Imagine... people think me and my mercs are a force now. We’d rule the underground with the power of that thing. Your bandits, the Royal Guard... everyone would bow to me. I could demand anything I want. A literal Queen’s ransom. I’d be the richest woman in Ikaatan for what I’d make them pay me to protect them.”
“A royal protection racket... really? That’s what you’d use it for? How do you know that would even work?”
“Listen here! I’ve had about enough of your damn questions! I’m going to get that moonstone you hid from me and I’m going to get that power whether you think I can or not!”
Taria smirked. “Good luck with that...”
Lila’s sharp, angry green eyes bored into Taria’s. She didn’t like the way Taria had said that. “What!?”
“You know that whole thing about where I hid it? I made that up. I never saw it. I really don’t know where it is, you damn fool. I was caught by those guardians before I even laid eyes on it. And you clearly just didn’t look hard enough.”
Lila grabbed Taria by the scruff of the neck and pulled her close. “You’re lying!”
“Am I? Tell me, Lila, why would I give up that information so easily? Have you ever known me to just share secrets after just a few angry questions?”
Lila growled under her breath and shoved the ball gag back into Taria’s mouth, strapping it on tighter than before, pulling up the cloth around her neck and covering her mouth and nose with it, making sure to tie it on as tight as she could.
“I’ll keep that lying mouth shut! You dare to lie to me!? Then you don’t get to speak!”
“Mmmpphh...” Taria grunted.
“I know you’re hiding something from me. And I will get it out of you! But I’ll leave you here, in the dark, to struggle and stew in your own thoughts. I’ll make you damn well talk, Taria. Just you wait...”
Lila stood up again and slammed the heavy door shut, dousing the lantern along the way and plunging the dingy underground cell into darkness. She left her captive alone and Taria listened to her fading footsteps and began battling her restraints in earnest.
She tried kicking out her legs but they were held firmly in place. Taria twisted her torso, shifted her arms, wriggled her wrists, and then her frustration took over and she bucked and thrashed wildly, grunting and screaming into her gag but she was completely helpless and stuck in place, utterly silenced by her gag.
Though she got a degree of satisfaction from taunting Lila, she did not look forward to whatever else the big mercenary leader had in store for her. She would never admit it but her anger and frustration at being unable to escape buried the fear bubbling up in her stomach. And, helplessly bound and gagged as she was, Taria hoped her friends were working on some sort of rescue plan...
...
“I really don’t like this idea,” Celia said. “I mean, can we really trust bandits?”
Arys turned to the small woman beside her, meeting her pretty blue eyes. “Not usually. But they follow Taria. They’ve come to her rescue before. Brina has quite a few times, actually. And what else can we do? Lila’s force is at least twenty strong. How many Royal Guards do you think the Queen would be willing to spare? Maybe a quarter of that number?”
“She admires Taria...” Celia said, sounding defeated. “But yes. Queen Janessa is pretty cautious about that stuff. Ever since those bandits captured her. But these are the same bandits, Arys!”
“I know. And they’ve captured me before, too. But I think I impressed them. They seem to respect me a bit more. Plus they’d do anything for Taria. They just had a leadership contest when they caught Fa’rah and they practically begged Taria not let her win and lead again.”
“Wow... either that means they really love Taria or really hate Fa’rah,” Celia said.
“Probably a bit of both,” Arys added.
They continued on toward the camp, the bandits letting Arys pass without a second look. Celia got a few puzzled glances her way but, as soon as they saw who she was with, they paid her no mind. Within minutes, they reached Brina’s tent. She was outside, sitting by a fire, sharpening her sword with a whetstone.
“The little merc,” Brina said, standing to her full height. She wasn’t especially tall but she practically towered over the two smaller women. “Who’s this?”
“This is Celia. She’s a friend of Taria’s.”
Brina nodded. “Seems she’s got lots of those... that woman has gotten around a bit.”
“She’s led quite a life,” Celia said. “And right now... she’s in trouble.”
Brina let out a short breath. “Isn’t she always?”
“This is the bad kind of trouble,” Arys said.
“I see. It’s the necromancer again?”
“Not this time. It’s Lila.”
Brina chuckled slightly, bemused. “Right. Your old boss. The one Taria left our group to join up with. That is a problem. She joining up with them again or what?”
“No she’s been captured,” Arys said.
“How did that happen? Didn’t you and her head off to find some fancy rock?”
Arys pulled the moonstone from the pouch. “We did. But we ran into some complications.”
Brina whistled when she saw the moonstone. “Damn... that thing’s got to be worth a fortune. No wonder you wanted it so bad.”
“Apparently Lila did too,” Celia said. “She followed us and we didn’t even know.”
“Yeah, they’ve been getting better. Had to bust out a couple of our girls the other day from their little fortress. Caught them out hunting and wanted to ransom them back to us. Imagine the nerve, doing that to us of all people...”
“Well, the thing is, we need your help,” Arys said. “The whole clan, I mean.”
Brina chuckled. “I’m getting to like you and the way you think. You’re fixing for a full scale brawl then?”
“I can’t think of another way to get her out of there,” Arys said. “Stealth is too risky, Lila will already have her on guard, and I’ve already got a target on my back with her.”
“Plus, your clan outnumbers them, right?” Celia asked.
“Only just,” Brina said. “How many do they have again?”
“I think twenty-two by my last count... oh. Counting me. So twenty-one,” Arys said.
“We’ve got two more than that,” Brina said. “So not a huge advantage. But it’ll do.”
“So you’ll do it?”
“We’ve had good days since she took over again,” Brina said. “Swimming in gold, always busy with pretty decent work, and honestly... it feels good to help people out, too.”
“You’ve been... helping people?” Celia asked.
“Giving gold or food or clothes to the poor, yeah. That was Taria’s idea. Picked it up from some fire mage friend of hers, she told me.”
Celia smiled warmly. “Elyn...”
“Yeah, that’s her name,” Brina said. “So when are we moving out?”
“As soon as we can. You think the clan will fight for her?” Celia asked.
“They will if I tell them to,” Brina said. “And I will.”
“All right,” Arys said. “We should lay out a plan of attack before we go. Make sure our strategy is sound before we just attack blindly. I know the weak spots of the fortress.”
“Come in the tent and let’s talk more,” Brina said. “And let’s get our girl back.”
...
Her eyes had adjusted to the darkness over time. She had no idea how long Lila had been gone but, frustrated as she was, Taria simply could not free herself from her bondage.
Sweat beaded on her forehead and dripped down into her intense, purple eyes while she continued struggling furiously. But she paused for a moment, breathing hard, when a dim light appeared just beyond the stairs leading to the dungeon she was being held within.
She watched as Lila appeared at the bottom of the stairs, the lantern light flickering off her cell’s walls. Lila approached and unlocked the cell door, hanging the lantern just above Taria, smirking down at her.
“Had a good think?” Lila asked.
“Mmmpphh...” Taria grunted, glaring.
“So... yes or no questions. You know how this works. Because this time, that gag is not coming off.”
Taria sighed and continued glaring into Lila’s eyes.
“All right. So you were lying to me before, right?”
Taria remained silent.
“Want to play it that way, do you? Because I can make this a lot less fun for you if you want,” Lila said, punching one open palm with a shut fist. “You want that?”
Taria grunted and slowly shook her head. “Nmm...”
“I thought not. So, you give me answers, you won’t get hurt. Understand?”
“Ymmpph,” Taria said, nodding.
“Glad we could reach an understanding. So then... you were lying to me that whole time?”
“Ymmph.”
“Okay then. Which means you lied about not knowing where the moonstone is?”
Taria growled into her gag and bucked against the ropes. They held firm. “Nmmm!”
“See, even through that gag, I hear you lying to me,” Lila said. “Here’s how it is. I followed you into that temple, right? Thing is, when I get there, I find you, all trussed up like a neat little package. And nothing else. No moonstone, nothing. So what do you think that looks like, blue?”
“Mm dmmdmnnt tmmk mmmtt!!”
“I don’t care about whatever it was you said...” Lila replied. “And I’ll tell you what it looks like. You got in there, snagged the moonstone, and hid it somewhere before you got yourself all tied up by those guardians. So you must have...” Lila trailed off. She went completely still and heard distant shouts from somewhere above her. An even louder voice, quiet but still easily heard, shouted above the rest. They both recognized it.
“Look at these idiots run! You’re supposed to be scary?” This was followed by a hearty laugh. “This is what you get when mess with Maateni!”
Lila and Taria locked eyes and right then. Lila had it figured out.
“Brina. You... you weren’t alone, were you?”
Taria smirked beneath her gag. “Mmm mmm,” she said, shaking her head.
“So then that means... whoever was with you has the moonstone?”
“Thmmtph rmmt..” Taria said with a subtle nod.
“And now they’re here.”
Lila looked around and shook her head. “Cornered... only one way out. And a whole mess of bandits in my way. Damn me for wanting to keep prisoners secure...”
Taria chuckled into her gag, watching Lila frantically pace and try to come up with a plan.
“Quit your snickering. I’ll put your damn lights out!”
Taria fell silent and let herself relax into her bonds. It was only a matter of time until she was free. She just watched Lila continuing to pace, trying to think. The sounds outside were getting louder. They could even hear some voices that sounded muffled. Brina laughed again, her voice much louder and closer from above this time.
“That’s it! Keep roping them up! Gag them all nice and tight, too! No need to hear their whiny little voices! Move forward! These ladies are done for! Get in there and take care of Lila! Find Taria!”
With nothing else left to plan, Lila drew a knife from her boot and rushed over to Taria, standing behind her chair.
“Mmmph! Gmmt mmff! Nmmm!!” Taria squirmed and struggled, realizing what Lila was planning but she couldn’t do anything about it. Lila reached down and touched the blade of the knife to the skin of Taria’s throat and she stopped struggling.
“Smart move, girl,” Lila said. “You keep moving around like that and you’ll figure out might quick just how fast you can bleed out.”
Heavy footsteps began descending the stairs. They were close now. Taria wanted to tell them what was happening.
“BRRMNNMMM!! STMM BMMMKK!:
Brina was the first to reach the bottom of the stairs, followed closely by Arys and then Celia. Four bandits came in and flanked them but Brina stopped them dead when she saw inside the open cell.
“You’ll stay back if you don’t want to see her bleed,” Lila said.
“Get off her!” Celia shouted, stepping forward. Brina held out one arm toward her.
“Hey hey... Easy now. This one ain’t bluffing.”
“Clever. For a bandit,” Lila said.
“What do you want?” Brina asked, sheathing her sword and motioning for her bandits to do the same.
“I want out of here. And the moonstone. You let me walk out, hand over the moonstone, and your girl here lives. I don’t get what I want... well... I don’t think you even want the thought in your head, do you?”
Taria did her best to shake her head. “Nmm! Dmmt lmmt hmmr! Dmnnt gmmf hmmr wmmt shmm wmmntph!”
Brina gave her own head a shake in response. “Sorry, boss. I’m not watching you die. We have to do what she says.”
“NNNMMMM!!”
Brina nodded to Arys. “Give her the shiny rock. The rest of you... step aside. Let her through.”
Taria squirmed in her bonds but Lila put a stop to it, pressing the knife tighter against her skin. Arys approached her slowly and Taria once again tried to shake her head.
“Nmmm! Mmmrrmmpph, plmmph dmmnt!”
“It’ll be okay, Taria. Please trust me,” Arys said, reaching into her pouch and pulling out a shimmering white stone. Taria pleaded with her eyes this time but Arys just gave her a reassuring nod.
“That’s it?” Lila asked.
“What else could it be?” Arys replied. “Take it and let Taria go.”
Lila moved slowly at first, taking the stone in her hand and keeping her knife to Taria’s throat. “Now let me walk out of here. Stand aside and keep your weapons where I can see them.”
Everyone in the room did as she asked and Lila hesitated for a second before sprinting for the stairs, pushing past the bandits and running up the stairs.
Arys knelt down and pulled the cloth covering Taria’s mouth and nose down, loosening the strap holding the ball gag in her mouth and removing it.
“Arys...” Taria said. “She’s getting away!”
A low chuckle brought Taria’s attention to the back of the room outside the cell. Brina stepped forward with a wide smile on her face and nodded toward the four bandits in the room.
“Go make sure she hasn’t hurt anyone,” she said to the bandits. “And make sure you have lots of rope for her. She’s a tough fighter, and she’s strong, so make sure she’s tied up nice and tight, you hear me?”
The bandits affirmed the understanding and started up the stairs after Lila, leaving just the four women in the dungeon. Arys was busy untying and cutting the ropes binding Taria, who flashed Brina a confused look. “What... is happening?”
“Little merc... would you care to show Taria that shiny rock you got from the temple?”
“The... what?”
Arys stopped untying Taria for a moment and reached into her pouch, showing her the translucent, white stone with the shining rainbow of colours inside it.
“Wait... what did you give her?”
“I polished a rock I found in the lake by the camp,” Arys said. “Might be marble or something. I don’t know. But it sure as hell isn’t a moonstone.”
“You planned this?”
“We thought she might try something,” Brina said. “And I have to say, your little girlfriend here is a pretty good actress.” She nodded to Celia.
“Oh, she’s not-”
“We’re not, um... not that it wouldn’t be nice just, um...” Both Celia and Taria tripped over their words, eliciting another hearty laugh from Brina.
“Come on, you two! Relax for a minute or two! We just won the day here! Speaking of... those Royal Guards nearby?” Brina asked, turning to Celia.
“Yes, but there aren’t enough to transport that many prisoners. They only have room for one.”
“Well then they’ll take Lila,” Brina said. “And a few of our girls will make sure those other mercs will be right here waiting for those goody-good little guards to do their honest duty and haul them all off to prison.”
“I’d say that should suffice. Though I doubt many people at the palace will approve of the Royal Spymaster working with bandits.”
“Call it a necessary evil,” Brina said. “Besides, you know how high the bounty on Lila’s head is. Even higher than the one on mine, I suspect. Being a mercenary isn’t illegal but she was worse than even us on our worst days with all the kidnapping, extortion and whatnot.”
Arys stood up with Taria, finally finished untying her, and agreed with Brina’s assertion. “That’s really true. I used to get in arguments with her all the time about that stuff, telling her we were basically just turning into bandits. One of those arguments is how I wound up tied up in that cage Taria rescued me from.”
The bandits returned then, two of them carrying a heavily squirming burlap sack, dropping it to the floor. Brina helped pull the sack loose and waved Taria over.
“There you are, boss. All nice and packaged up.”
“Mmmrghmmphrrgghmmprrmmphhh!” Lila ranted, struggling wildly, spouting nonsene into her gag as she struggled.
The rope on her body almost mummified her. Rope tightly coiled around her body from ankles to knees, then upward from knees all the way up her thighs, pushing up her leather battle skirt and showing off a bit of her muscular legs. Her hands were locked into tight leather mittens and tied behind her back with miles of rope. Another coil kept her writs pinned tight to her back and wound its way all the way from there to just below her shoulders, completely trapping her arms and shoulders in an extremely tight hug. Adding to it, rope anchored her wrists to her ankles, upper arms, and even a coil of rope around her forehead, keeping it upright. Her hogtie was completed with a layered gag of cloth, her mouth stuffed full and bulging her cheeks, a cloth pulled between her teeth, two more cloths covering her mouth, following by three pulled very tightly over her mouth and nose.
“Wow...” Taria said. “Well done. Nice and thorough job.”
She looked up at the assembled women in the room. “Thanks for the rescue,” she said.
Brina nodded and smiled. “You earned your spot. Least we can do is honour it.”
“Arys... you too,” Taria said. “I appreciate it. Again.”
“Don’t mention it,” Arys said, smiling sweetly.
Then Taria met Celia’s eyes. “Looks like I’m thanking you again, too. Though it’s been a little while since the last one.”
“It sure has,” Celia said. “Feels like a lifetime ago. But I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”
“Well.... thanks,” Taria said, trying her best to smile warmly. She put a hand on Celia’s shoulder. “We should... talk more. You know?”
“Yeah! We should...” Celia said. “Maybe just visit each other a bit?”
“I think I’d like that,” Taria replied.
“Me too.”
They both heard Brina snicker in the background by ignored it.
“Now... let’s head back to camp,” Taria said. “Arys, we need to figure out what we’re doing with that moonstone and your scythe. If it can really destroy the undead and remove Morrina’s power, then we need to figure that out.”
Arys nodded. “Of course. I’ll get right on it.”
Now with something like a plan, and a victory behind them, Taria started to feel a little better about the future. With at least one threat behind bars, they had just one more in front of them. But, as Taria well knew, nothing would ever come easy. And this was no exception.
Story Theme Song: Emily Bell- Can't Talk Back
Chapter 2: Old Allies
Taria’s eyes traced the fine edge of her sword, searching and probing up and down the blade for any nicks or dents, finally spotting a slight barb of metal sticking out near the hilt.
“There you are...” she muttered to herself.
Sitting on a tree stump, sword in her lap and whetstone at the ready, Taria began grinding the stone against her sword’s edge, trying to work out the imperfection in its sharpness. The oiled surface of the stone seemed to be doing its job, grinding down the shaped steel into a deadly sharp edge and slowly but surely removing the small nick in its side.
A familiar voice distracted her from her work. She may have been able to concentrate if not for who, and how, they called out her name.
“Taria!”
It was Celia. And she sounded troubled. Taria stopped entirely and turned around to face her friend, standing from her seat and meeting her as she approached. “You okay?”
“I’m fine but I just heard from the Captain.”
“Of the Royal Guard?” Taria asked.
“Yes. She says she found her lieutenant in place of Lila in her holding cell. The poor woman was in a panic, she was tied up so tight.”
“So Lila escaped.”
“Some of her mercenaries broke loose and sprung her free. One of my spies overheard them talking and... she’s coming for you. And Arys. You may need to hide for a bit. Both of you.”
“We can’t,” Taria said. “We’re this close to having what we need to beat Morrina. Arys is still working on how to combine the moonstone’s power with the scythe. So we can’t afford to go hiding underground somewhere.”
“Well what can we do? Just let them come? If she gathers all her mercenaries-”
“We outnumber them.”
“What if she attacks at night when you’re unprepared? Taria, I heard all about when Jhana had her group overwhelm you all at headquarters.”
“Arys did try to warn us... but you’re right. Even without Lila, they had us like nothing. That’s no good...”
“She’s still in the city, as far as I know, but she must be working on breaking out the rest of her group. What can we do?”
Taria turned away for a moment. Lila was still in the city. There was one person on her mind, someone who perhaps hadn’t been there in a while, but probably knew Disa better than anyone.
“Taria? What’s the plan?”
“How soon can you get to the portal?” Taria asked.
Celia stumbled over her words in her confusion. “Um... well... maybe an hour or so. We’re not far from it. Why?”
“I’m going to Disa. See is Luna and Mirelle will help out with Arys’ scythe situation. Luna knows the magic and Mirelle is the best I’ve seen who could blend magic and weapons together.”
“Okay... but that doesn’t solve-”
“And see if you can get a message to Meryn,” Taria said. “Tell that, as soon as she can, to meet me in Disa. And let her know she’ll be looking for Lila and her mercenaries.”
“Meryn’s, um... pretty busy. So are the others.”
“I know. Just make sure she’s not too busy. She’ll come if it’s urgent. Which it is.”
“All right. I’ll try. I’ll see if Jonas can track her down,” Celia said.
“Thanks, Celia. I owe you one.”
Celia smiled. “Okay. Buy me dinner, maybe?”
Taria smirked and did her best to keep her cheeks from turning red. Celia herself blushed and did her best to correct what she blurted out. “Oh! I mean... what I meant to say... I didn’t mean-”
“It’s fine. I’d be happy to,” Taria said.
“Oh... O-okay... That would be fun,” Celia said.
“It would. Once this is all over, I’ll take you to that place by the harbour. Okay?”
“Yeah... that sounds good. I should go. Urgent business and everything...”
“Sure thing. Be careful out there, Celia.”
“Yeah. You too, Taria.”
The Spymaster took off again, disappearing into the camp and back into the surrounding forest. Taria sighed to herself, picked up her sword, and headed for the road. Thinking about her interaction with Celia, her mind turned to Meryn.
It had been a while since the two card-playing, sparring buddies had seen each other. Taria felt herself smiling again at the thought of seeing Meryn again. That was someone else she wouldn’t mind spending time with. Maybe, after we catch Lila, we can play cards again Taria thought to herself. That would be cool...
...
It took her some effort, but Taria scaled the wall of the old watchtower that stood vigil over the city. It was usually locked off, with Royal Guards barring the way, but Meryn had always somehow found a way around them by climbing the thing like some kind of mountain goat. Taria had much more trouble and grunted as she pulled herself up, sweating from the effort. A strong hand reached out to her and helped pull her up to the top and look down over the city.
“You could have picked a better spot...” Taria said.
“Hello to you too,” the voice of the golden eyed woman beside her said.
“Hey, we’re not all part spider, climbing walls like its nothing.”
Meryn smirked and clapped her friend on the shoulder. “You complain too much.”
She missed that wry smirk. It had been a while since she had seen Meryn back in her element. Back in her yellow attire; the sleeveless tunic, knee length, flowing skirt, knee high boots and the black bracers with a yellow crosshatch patters... the sword on one hip, the small crossbow on the other... the Gold-Eyed Maiden was always a sight to behold.
“So Celia’s filled you in?” Taria asked.
“Lila’s been paying off tavern keepers,” Meryn said, skipping ahead in their conversation.
Always straight to the point Taria thought to herself.
“Hiding here and there. So far, she’s had six mercs following her. How many does she have now?”
“Twenty-one, last I heard,” Taria replied.
“Right. Long way to go then. She hasn’t picked one up for a few hours. I’ve been tracking her all over. She’s moving at random, trying to avoid the guards and make sure she’s not being followed.”
“Well clearly that’s failed,” Taria said, smirking at her friend.
“She doesn’t know that,” Meryn said.
“True enough. So, any plan then?”
“We split up. Either side of the street here,” Meryn said, pointing at the ground. “I take the tavern. The old one. The one that...” Meryn stared at the building for a moment and gave her head a shake. “Nevermind that. I’ll be in there. You take the smithy on the other side of the road. She’s hiding behind a market stall to our right. We pincer her when she tries to head up the road toward the gate,” Meryn said, nodding toward the portcullis of the city gates several hundred feet up the road to their left.
“Here’s hoping that works,” Taria said.
“Only one way to find out,” Meryn said, climbing over the edge of the watchtower and beginning her descent. Taria called down after her.
“I’m taking the stairs!”
“Suit yourself.”
Meryn continued climbing down while Taria made her way to the stairs. She had to push past guards at the doorway and speak about official business to get them to leave her alone. They knew who she was so they let her walk back out into the street.
By the time she got there, Meryn was already gone, presumably inside the tavern. Taria headed across the street, pretending the browse the weapons and tools on display in front of the smithy before heading inside the building, keeping an eye out the door at the street and the market stall Meryn had pointed out.
She kept her eyes open for quite some time but she grew concerned when Lila didn't appear. Nor was there any sign of Meryn.
Taria stepped out into the street, still pretending to browse, and her eyes flitted to the market stall and confirmed what she had feared. Lila was not there.
She stepped back inside the smithy and noticed, this time, there were no patrons and even the blacksmith wasn't there. Before she could even think, she felt a sharp pain in the side of her neck and the world immediately began to go dark.
"Sorry, blue. You'll have to try harder next time. I already knew your gold-eyed friend was tailing us. I was just waiting for her to draw you out."
Taria stumbled and fell to the wooden floor, barely hanging on to consciousness.
"Already took care of your friend. But she's getting lonely," Lila said. "Get her tied up nice and tight. And stash her with the maiden. Make sure they're secure. Soon as that's done we're busting out the others and headed after scythe girl. Understand?"
The women with Lila obeyed their leader, affirming her order, and dragged Taria to the back room of the smithy before her consciousness finally gave out and the world went dark…
…
"Mmpph!! Gmmt mmp! Tmmrmnnmmm!!"
The muffled voice was very familiar to the bandit leader's ears. But the fog of her mind wouldn't clear and her eyelids still felt very heavy.
“Hmm! Wmmk mmpp!”
Her memory was coming back to her. Meryn was back in town. They had been looking for Lila. But Lila found them first and...
Her eyes popped open and Taria let a sigh escape her nose. By the sounds of things, I think I can predict what happened to me...
Taria tried to reach up to her still groggy eyes but her arms didn’t respond and she felt ropes biting into her skin. She tested her voice. “Mmph,” she grunted.
Score a good guess for me, then... Taria thought.
She finally took in her surroundings. They were in a basement, that much she knew. The wooden supports on the rough, stone walls looked rather familiar, as did the wooden ceiling...
The smithy... they must work for Lila.
That did seem to be the case as she and Meryn were both trapped in barred cells next to each other. They were the only two in the smithy’s basement but it seemed the room had been designed to hold captives like them.
She looked to Meryn first, directly in front of her. She was leaning up against a cold, stone wall facing a cell to the right of her own. Meryn was lying on her stomach, hogtied. The ropes framed her chest and pinned her arms to her sides. Her wrists were crossed behind her pack, palms facing outward, tied in a box tie position, and then in turn tied to her arm ropes and ankles. Her strong, shapely legs were also tied off at the calves and thighs, keeping them tightly together. Adding to that, Meryn was gagged with a leather panel, strapped on behind her head, holding something soft like cloth in her mouth.
Taria realized that she was not hogtied but she couldn’t move very far. The ropes encircled her body in all the same places as Meryn and her arms were also box tied behind her back but they were tied to an iron ring set into the wall so she couldn’t move from the spot. She felt around the ropes and realized that the knots were nowhere within her reach. Making matters worse, Taria was gagged just as tightly as Meryn, only she felt a wadded up cloth stuffing her mouth full followed by a dark cloth tied on behind her head, covering her mouth.
Peering at her friend again, Meryn was sweating a bit from the struggle but hadn’t made any progress thus far. She knew the pair of them were pretty good at escaping but Lila always did know how to tie up her prisoners. It would be tough, even for seasoned escapists like Meryn and Taria.
Taria did what she would to try and squirm in her bonds but everything had been pulled extra tight, per Lila’s instruction, and there was no wiggle room to even find a millimetre of slack in her ropes. Noticing Meryn again, Taria realized that she was still tied very tightly but it seemed they hadn’t quite taken the same precautions with her as they had with Taria. Perhaps it was something vindictive on Lila’s part to tie Taria tighter but Meryn had considerably more slack in her ropes, though still not very much.
Taria pulled hard with her arms, trying to find any amount of slack, and flailed her hands uselessly in an attempt to find any knots. She stamped her feet on the floor and growled behind her gag as she just started thrashing in her bonds, quickly working up a sweat. After a time, Taria had to rest and then noticed... Meryn was making some progress.
The box tie made things difficult but Meryn had managed to untie the rope connected her wrists and ankles and stretched out her legs shuffling her way to the wall and struggling to sit herself up. Taria’s brow furrowed as she watched Meryn just work her wrists up and down in a strange sawing type motion but she realized that Meryn was getting more slack in the ropes binding her arms as she did so.
Taria tried the same thing... but the ropes may as well have been iron. She couldn’t move anything at all. They really went overboard tying me up Taria thought. At least one of us can get out.
The rope connecting Meryn’s wrists to her bound arms fell away and she started picking away at the knots on her upper back. Lila had tied her up rather hastily to leave those knots so easy to reach. Coupled with Meryn’s impressive flexibility and the ropes binding her arms were soon falling loose as well. With less rope pulling on her wrists, the rope binding them was much looser now as well.
Taria knew Meryn was strong so it didn’t take her long to work her wrists back and forth until finally pulling one of them free and removing the rope. She rubbed her wrists, a little raw from the rope burn and all her movements, trying to soothe the burning sensation.
Putting that out of her mind, Meryn quickly untied her legs and removed her gag, standing up tall in her cell and checking the door.
“Just a latch...” she said, her voice a little hoarse from the gag having filled her mouth for so long. “No way I could have reached it on the floor. Guess they were in a hurry to not lock these.”
Meryn opened the cell door and stepped out, taking her weapons from the chest Lila had stored them within. She looked to Taria and an idea came to her.
“How much noise can you make?”
Taria just shrugged and grunted, her voice only just audible behind the gag.
“I’d wager she’s going to come back and check on us,” Meryn said. “Soon as you hear her, make all kinds of noise and draw her down here. I’m going to hide.”
“Wmmmrr?” Taria asked.
Meryn didn’t understand what she said but recognized the questioning tone in her voice.
“Not much place to hide, I know, but she won’t see me. You know me.”
“Mmm hmmm.”
“Sorry to use you like a decoy but she’ll be more distracted if she has something to focus on.”
Taria shrugged and shook her head. “Mmtf fmmnn.”
Meryn simply nodded, relieved to hear the reassuring tone in her good friend’s muffled voice. And, within seconds, she practically vanished. Taria sat forward as far as her ropes would allow, trying to find Meryn anywhere... but she had no idea where she could have gone. She just seemed to take a few steps and disappear. Taria spotted a small cupboard in the corner with just enough space to hide behind and realized that had to be where Meryn went.
She was distracted from her thoughts when she heard footsteps on the floorboards above and recognized the sound of Lila’s voice from upstairs.
“Any trouble from our prisoners?” she seemed to be asking.
No voices answered but Lila chuckled anyway. “I thought not.”
Taria seized her opportunity and took in a deep breath.
“HHHHLLLMMMPPP!! HHLLMMMPPP MMM!! MMMTMMM MMM, PLLMMMPPPHHH!! MMMMMPPPHHH!!”
The stairs creaked as someone made their way down the stairs.
“Taria... what is all this noise about?” Lila asked. “I swear, I’ll gag you even tighter if you don’t... wait.”
Lila reached the bottom of the stairs and noticed the empty cell beside Taria, rushing over to it and noticing the pile of discarded rope and the leather gag where a prisoner had been.
Then she heard the telltale click of s weapon being drawn behind her and felt the tip of a blade pressed against her back.
“Get in the cell,” a voice commanded. “Now.”
“I could break you in half, Maiden. You sure you want to threaten me?”
Another click went off behind her and she felt a sharp pain in her lower back. She reached behind her and pulled out a sleep dart, fired from Meryn’s handheld crossbow.
“Yes. I am.”
Lila staggered forward into the open cell, practically falling onto the pile of ropes, falling quickly unconscious with Meryn standing tall above her.
“I’ll get you out in a second, Taria. Right now I need to make sure this one is secure.”
...
Taria tapped the table once, a bit of frustration escaping her facade. Though a genuine, warm smile crossed her lips and her eyes met that of her opponent.
“You’re doing it again,” Taria said.
“What exactly am I doing?” Meryn asked.
“That stone face. You always look like you’re up to something. And you just keep taking my money.”
“Maybe try folding instead of just running face first into me,” Meryn said.
“I have. You keep winning with crappy hands that way. I don’t know how you do it.”
“Luck of the draw,” Meryn answered simply. “I can’t control what cards find their way into our hands. Besides, it’s only five card draw. This is the easy one. You should have won more than two hands by now.”
“Not against you. You ever think of entering a tournament?”
“And miss cleaning you out? Why would I bother?” Meryn asked with a smirk.
Taria tossed the cards down. “Well, I’m done. I have to keep some gold on my side of the table.”
Meryn gathered everything up and took a swig of the mug of ale beside her. “Been a while since I’ve had a good drink in Disa,” she said. “You sure you want to buy this round? You’re looking a little light.”
“No need to rub it in,” Taria said with a smile. “I did miss this, even if I’m losing. It’s been too long.”
“We’ll have to play again sometime. And maybe I can invite Saira.”
“Who’s that?” Taria asked.
Meryn put the cards away and took another swig of ale. “Right. I forgot I didn’t tell you. I uh... I met someone.”
“Really?” Taria managed another warm smile, leaning forward. “Met as in...”
“Yes,” Meryn said. “She, um... she just hit me in the right way, you know?”
“Yeah, I can understand that.”
“So... have you, um... have you met anybody?”
Taria leaned back and the stoic facade was back in an instant. “No time for that. There’s important work to do.”
“You know I used to say the same thing,” Meryn said. “And people used to think you and I... you know.”
Taria chuckled. “Oh I know. It’s like we’re not allowed to be friends. We have to be doing... other stuff if we’re hanging around each other so much.”
Meryn shrugged. “I guess some people just think that way. But I guess now that I’m with Saira, people will stop thinking it.”
“Here’s hoping,” Taria agreed.
“So you really aren’t thinking about that at all though? There’s really no one you want to... get closer to?”
Taria realized then how hard it was for her to hide anything from Meryn’s piercing, golden gaze. Maybe that explained how she beat Taria at cards so much.
“Why do you ask?”
“Taria... I can see it. There’s a distracted look in your eyes. And that distant hope... it’s a look I know pretty damn well.”
“Is it that obvious?”
“Not really. I just know you,” Meryn said, leaning forward. “Anyone I know?”
Taria sighed but she didn’t anwwer.
“So it is someone I know. That merc friend of yours?”
“Arys? I’d do just about anything for her but no. There’s a weird power dynamic there like she looks up to me. And I don’t think either of us is feeling that way.”
Meryn nodded. “Right. That bandit friend then?”
“How do you know all this? You haven’t even met Arys or Brina.”
“People talk. Mostly Celia...”
Taria’s eyes flashed then, just for a fraction of a second, byt Meryn caught it and leaned back in her chair, smiling and drinking from her mug.
“Celia then,” Meryn said. “When did that happen?”
Taria let out a low breath and slumped into her chair. “You remember that mission back in Weston? I went into the woods after Aurora in that cabin of hers.”
“Right. When Celia saved your ass. I was pretty impressed with her performance on that one. Aurora is no pushover.”
“Good thing she’s on our side now,” Taria said. “Because that day, well... she had me. But Celia was there. And I just, I don’t know... she was so concerned about me and I don’t know why. Ever since then-”
“You’ve been thinking about her,” Meryn said, finishing Taria’s sentence. “Funny. It was the same with me and Saira. Only it went the other way around.”
Taria nodded. “You saved her?”
“Jewellery store robbery,” Meryn said. “She just had the sweetest smile I’d ever seen. And the way she looked at me... I didn’t expect to offer to walk her home.”
“True. You don’t normally do things like that,” Taria said.
“That’s what made it weird. But I figured out why I wanted to soon enough. Just... let me give you a bit of advice, if you want.”
“Go ahead.”
“Tell her what you’re feeling. I almost didn’t get the chance with Saira. It’s important. Because, from the way she was talking about you I think she might feel the same way.”
This got a sharp look from Taria. “You sure of that? Then what’s with all the questions?”
“I am. And I just wanted to see if you were being honest with yourself.”
“I mean, I think so...” Taria said.
“Just make sure Celia knows, too,” Meryn said. “You don’t want that regret hanging over your head.”
Both women went silent and just enjoyed each other’s company for a while, polishing off their mugs of ale. A sharp voice called their attention from the tavern’s entrance and three people approached. Taria looked up and felt mildly disappointed that Celia was not among them.
“Arys,” she said. She nodded at her two old friends behind her. “Mirelle. Luna.”
“Hi, Taria!” Mirelle said in her usual cheerful tone. She bent down and wrapped her arms around Taria’s shoulders, planting a kiss on her cheek. “It’s been so long!”
“Funny, this,” Taria said. “Feels like not so long ago, you thought I sold us out thanks to Arys.”
“Oh...” Mirelle said. “Yeah. I’m still sorry about that. You know, the whole tying you up thing and keeping you in that tiny shed...”
“Probably more my fault,” Arys said. “I was still working with Lila’s group at the time. Though she did go missing for a while. I can only wonder what happened to her...”
“Elyn had to free her from a statue,” Taria said. “Jhana wasn’t pleased with her.”
“Oh, I remember that. And I remember we also thought that she had turned Celia...”
“Except she didn’t,” Meryn said. “How are you, Mirelle?”
“Meryn!” She hugged and kissed her friend as well. “I didn’t know you were back, too!”
“This one needed my help,” Meryn said, nodding toward Taria. “So I came here and we got Lila.”
“She did most of the work,” Taria admitted. “Although, I didn’t mind the break. Even if I’m getting a little sick of being tied up.”
“Aren’t we all,” Luna added from beside Mirelle. “Except when Mirelle does it.”
Taria chuckled. “I, for one, don’t miss that. This girl knows how to tie knots, let me tell you.”
Taria noticed then that Arys shrunk back a bit, seemingly keeping her distance.
In truth, Arys noticed the close group of friends and was beginning to feel like a but of a fifth wheel. But her eyes lit up when Taria flashed her a warm smile and waved her over.
“Taria?”
“How’s the progress with the scythe? These two help you out?”
Arys nodded. “Right! That! They did, yes! Look!” Arys pulled the weapon from her back and Taria immediately noticed the same shimmering quality to it that the moonstone had once had.
“We infused it,” Mirelle said. “Luna tapped into its power and connected it to the moon. I used what I know of enchantment and combined them. Look there!” She pointed to the crescent moon blade and the moonstone was there, inlaid where the blade met the handle. “It’s powerful now. It should do the work.”
Taria stood from the table and walked to Arys. “Then we’re ready. We find Morrina and end this.” She turned back to her friends. “Thanks for your help. Any idea where Celia went?”
“Back to her office. Said she needed to prepare herself to face Morrina.”
“She’s coming with me?” Taria asked.
“Why wouldn’t you? Lia thinks you’re the coolest! And she’s always so keen to help you!” Mirelle said. “I think somebody has a crush.”
Taria rubbed the back of her neck and felt her cheeks get hot. But she cleared her throat and kept herself composed.
“Well, anyway, thanks a lot. All of you. I won’t keep you from your work anymore. Meryn, say hi to your new girlfriend for me. I hope one day to meet her.”
“You will,” Meryn said. “That’s a promise.” She stood up and shook Taria’s hand, the two old friends managing a smile for each other. “Mirelle, Luna... good luck in Esterlin. Make sure Trivalia’s safe. I’ll be back to help out as soon as I can.”
“We will,” Mirelle said, hugging Taria again. “Good luck with everything here.”
Luna reached forward and shook Taria’s hand as well. “Be safe, friend,” Luna said.
“You too, friend,” Taria said.
The three women of the Order left the tavern then. With Taria and Arys alone, they looked at each other, eyes smiling. Arys kept her grip on the scythe and the two of them headed back out into the street and the bandit camp. They’d need a final plan of action for dealing with Morrina. And they finally had the power to do it.