Chapter 11

Enemies on the Trail

Alan awoke to the smell of fresh game cooking. Rolling over, he saw Tobias roasting a small deer on a spit. The fire crackled and sizzled as juice from the meat drizzled down on it. Tobias turned it rhythmically, cooking the beast evenly. Jerome sat nearby with a small pouch. Every fourth turn, he would sprinkle some spice on the meat. Alan thought it might be salt. Raven sat across the flames from him, watching the game turn with a hungry look. Stormy was sleeping next to him, her gentle breath steady.

Pulling himself to a standing position, Alan quickly made his way over to the fire and sat down. "How did you catch it?" Alan asked puzzled. When he had gone to bed last night, Tobias had taken third watch.

The other man simply shrugged. "It was about halfway through my watch when it came along. I heard it rustling in the bushes and had put arrow to string when it popped its head out of the bush. I loosed the string right quick and the buck gave one jump and fell over dead. I set it near the fire and dressed it while I finished my watch, and then started cooking it when the sun came up."

Alan was impressed. The Lady of the Light had smiled greatly on them last night then. Their rations were low from their travels in Sandytown, and they had not had the opportunity to really restock in Crossroads. Jerky meat from the venison would go a little way to refilling their food stocks. Lady willing, there would be plenty of opportunities like that to gather game.

Jerome finished sprinkling the last salt on the deer and stood up. "I think that's enough Tobias. We don't want to overcook it yet! I'll go to my wagon and grab a knife to slice up this feast." He announced. He soon vanished inside his garish wagon. He reappeared a moment later however with a long thick knife. Alan looked over it approvingly. It had a good strong cross-section and appeared to have excellent balance. A fine craftsman had made it indeed.

Jerome took the knife and began trimming the deer. He would pull off great slices of salted meat and pass them around. Stormy had woken up by this time and Jerome sliced her off an extra-large slice for her. When everyone had eaten their full, Jerome placed extra salt on the meat to cure it, and cut up the rest so they could distribute it amongst the packs.

Breakfast finished, the group prepared to leave. Alan doused the fire and replaced the plug of grass. Tobias got rid of the sticks he used for the spit and headed off to saddle his horse. Raven had already finished readying her big stallion and quickly moved forward to check the road for other travelers. Jerome hitched his horses and closed his wagon door before leading them out to the road. Stormy slung her traveling packs over her back, as well as the blanket and saddle. Alan hurried over and cinched it tight, receiving a gentle "oof" of air from her. "Sorry." He muttered. He quickly ran a practiced eye over the camp. Seeing nothing that would indicate they were there, he quickly swung up on Stormy's back and held on to his spear as she trotted out of the clearing.

On the road, he saw that Jerome already had his wagon moving at a fairly fast clip, and Raven had almost disappeared as she scouted ahead. Tobias walked with the wagon for a while, which left Alan and Stormy as rearguard. He felt a little grumpy at this unusual turn of events. He had started this expedition; he should have the right to lead after all. However, he kept these thoughts to himself as they made their way deeper into the forest.

As the sun reached its zenith and began it's long descent to earth, Raven came galloping back from her scouting mission. "Nothing to report." She said calmly. Alan nodded. Not that he expected anything, this far from Devil's Gate, but you never knew. He set about preparing some food for lunch while the mounts were tethered to a nearby tree.

After an unsatisfying meal of hardtack and biscuit, they remounted and set off. This time, Alan and Stormy galloped forward of the wagon, leaving Tobias on Red as rearguard. Raven and Kingsfire went ahead. Soon all Alan could hear was the jingle of tack and the creak of the wagon.

As they rode, his mind begun to wander afield. Adventuring sure wasn't what people made it to seem. If you believed the tales, there were great stories told by roaring campfires and plenty of food, or great excitement and camaraderie despite the hardships. So far, there had only been terror, boredom, and misery on this quest. As for camaraderie, now there was a laugh. Tobias had grown more withdrawn as they traveled. Jerome and Raven both had secrets of their own, and all Alan could hope for was that their secrets would not catch him by surprise.

A powerful yell jolted him from his thoughts. He looked up just in time to duck an axe that would have split his skull. Lady-blasted fool! When will I learn to keep a better watch! The brigand holding it gave a gap-toothed grimace as he tried to recover. Alan jabbed at his belly with his spear. The man grunted and fell to the ground. I have just killed a man, he dimly realized. Stormy's wild gyrations under him brought back the present. Another brigand had engaged her, and the sound of his sword against her spear rang out. Alan leaned forward and gabbed with his spear. The point buried itself in the man's throat. He dropped his sword and clutched at the ruined remnants of his windpipe.That's two. He dimly realized. Stormy surged by him and he fell.

Around Alan there was chaos. Four additional brigands beside's Alan's were down, the hilts of Jerome's knives in their bodies. Jerome was on his wagon still, cursing as he fought to keep another rough-faced fellow from running him through. Tobias was using his bow stave to keep three more away. Alan kneed Stormy forward, brandishing his own spear and yelling. Stormy's war cry echoed his as she charged forward.

As they passed the wagon, both his and Stormy's spears stabbed. The man fell with a strangled yell which was quickly silenced. Alan and Stormy plowed into the men surrounding Tobias. The next few minutes were filled with the crash of blade on blade and the sound of men dying. A bandit tried to hit Alan from the side. Alan jabbed and the man went down. Almost immediately there was another on his other side, howling and swinging his axe. Alan used his spear butt to knock aside the blow and swung up. The shaft clipped the other man on the chin and he toppled.

An impact threw him off the saddle. Alan rolled in the dirt and came up on his knee. He had lost his spear, so he grabbed his hunting knife off his belt. The man that had hit him was in the dust as well, yet he held on to his sword. Alan took off like a sprinter, racing to close the distance before the man could get his sword up. The man saw him and tried to bring the point of his weapon to bear, but Alan batted it away and stabbed. Then the man relaxed in the dust. Now I have killed five. However, while reduced to nearly a quarter of their number, there still remained four more men, armed with a combination of spears and axes. These men were more cautious, advancing in a group. Tobias fumbled with his pouch, trying to string his bow. If he could get it strung, it could end the fight. Alan moved to defend him, Stormy on his right. Jerome pulled out his last knife and prepared to throw.

Suddenly, there was a loud crashing noise as Raven charged through the underbrush and down on the surprised men. Her sword removed the head from a spear and cut an axeman down. The remaining two turned to run. Alan was more than willing to let them go, but Raven apparently had other ideas. Urging her charger on, she raced up behind the two men, sword held high.

"No!" cried Alan, not wanting to see men killed while running away.

Whether or not she heard Alan didn't know, but she swung Kingsfire ahead of the men and cut them off.

"Hold or die!" she called. Stormy charged forward to help, but the men didn't seem intent on fighting any more. They hurriedly threw down their weapons.

"Mercy please!" cried one man.

"Don't kill us!" whimpered the other one.

Alan ran up behind Stormy and Raven, looking down at them with a frown. He was stunned to see them latch onto him as if he was their only hope.

"Please milord, don't let them kill us" Begged the heavily built man.

"We meant no harm milord." Said the other, a mustached, sallow faced fellow. "We was merely…uh." He fumbled for words and stopped. Sweat beaded his brow and he licked his lips. Both their eyes were locked on Alan.

Alan was rooted to the spot. How could these men confuse him for a Lord? He was simply a farm boy. His clothing certainly indicate that, being all rough and made of stout wool and not fine silk. Why did they call him a lord then?

With a start, he realized that everyone was looking at him. Raven with a questioning look in her eye, Jerome with a speculating look, quickly hidden, and Tobias with a look that told of barely contained mirth. The men on the ground did not appear to notice. Care must be taken. Carelessness spoiled the work and would probably mean his death. Sweat beaded on his brow as he suppressed the urge to lick his lips.

Clearing his throat he said, "We will not kill these men Ms. Raven. That would be murder."

Her eyes flashed angrily for a moment. "They will simply rejoin their group and kill us or others." She spat.

The men fell over themselves babbling how they would not. They would live honest lives if given the chance. It was only the others who had forced them to join the group and they were sick of it.

Alan held up his hand and they all fell down. These men were despicable, blaming others for their own selfish desires. They deserved death, but it was not his to mete out. It remained for the law. His father had taught him that. However, he really didn't want to slow down, and these men might just do that. However…

"We are only a few days from Hell's Gate. We can turn them over to the Watch there, can't we?" He asked naively.

Jerome snorted and Raven rolled her eyes. "Alan." He rasped. "The constables in Hell's Gate are as rough a lot as these. Even if we do go to them with these two, they are just as likely to lock us up for bothering them as these two."

Alan was shocked right down through his boots. "What?" he managed. That couldn't be right! His father had always told him that Watchmen were good folk that hunted thieves and murders and upheld justice at all times. Jerome couldn't be right.

Tobias seemed to think so as well. "Now hold on Jerome." He said. "I'm sure that some of what you're saying is true, but aren't you exaggerating a little? I mean, they're the Watch, for goddess sake. Surely they'll help us."

Jerome shook his head in the negative. "I've dealt with them before. They are a rough lot whose sole commander is the governor. He uses them as his own club over the shopkeepers and peasantry in Hell's Gate. They don't spend their time locking up thieves or cutpurses unless they are stupid enough to steal something of his cronies. Most of the time they're looking for those who speak out against Governor Delmore, or any he wishes to punish. Believe me, we are far better off not going to the Watch."

Alan was now torn and confused. "But Jerome," he asked. "I thought that the Gleed ruled Hell's Gate?" Tobias echoed his statement.

"I never said they ruled. I said that they lived there and they traded there. Governor Delmore is not stupid enough to go against them, now is he? In fact, he often goes out of his way to getting them what they want." Jerome huffed, slightly annoyed.

Blocked, Alan stopped to think. There must be a way out of this, if he could only have a few minutes to sort out the problem. The brigands continued to stare at him, the rank smell of them making Alan want to gag. He turned away to get as far from the smell as he could and finally got a good look at his surroundings. There was a curve in the road here, limiting how far one could see ahead. Also, the trees grew close to the road in this spot, making it ideal for laying an ambush. It was a wonder how they didn't die in the first minute of the engagement. Alan was very glad the men didn't seem to have bows, although he thought that was very odd. He turned back to the men and studied them a little closer. They wore thick leather jackets with small studs in them, as well as thick trousers. Their boots were scuffed and marred, and had clearly seen years of hard use. It was the colors that finally convinced him however. None of the colors matched, but most still had black or garish crimson on their jackets. There were some unanswered questions here.

He turned to the muscled man, as he seemed the brighter of the two. "How did you know we would be here?" he asked quietly.

The man gulped nervously. "We always use this spot. It's the best spot around." He bluffed.

Muscles froze as Alan centered his spear on his throat. Had to make an impression. "You get only one lie." He said softly. "And that was it." The spear point rested under the man's chin. "Again I shall ask. Why were you here." Behind him he could here Tobias fidget where he stood. Ahead he could see Raven's confused face.

"All right." Muscles said, trying not to move his chin at all. "It was the other man who told us where you'd be."

Alan went very still. It couldn't be the same man. "And what, pray tell, did this man look like."

The brigand thought for a moment. "'e was tall, about your height. 'e had gold teeth, arms as big as my head and a nasty streak to 'im. Don't rightly know why he wanted us to attack you. Looked like 'e could to the job on 'is own, ya know."

Jerome turned away with a stormy face. Raven's face was smooth as glass, although there was a slight tightening around the lips that showed how upset she was. Alan felt like cursing. It had to be Jones. But why did he go to the expense of hiring brigands?

There had to be a reason. "What did he say, exactly." Asked Alan levelly.

The brigand said quietly, "To waylay a party with a wagon, centaur and rider, and guard. The one on the centaur would be carrying something worth taking, and as for the man on the wagon, 'e was to die slowly." He gulped. The man apparently thought that these words would condemn him, and Alan wasn't too sure that they wouldn't.

Alan looked up and saw the conflicting expressions on his friend's faces. Stormy's was horrified that someone would hire people to kill them, Tobias seemed angry that they had gotten into this situation in the first place, Jerome looked apologetic and Raven speculating. He didn't know what to do about anything in this situation. They had found out that someone was trying to kill them, and now they had to decide on whether or not to let these two go.

He desperately wanted to push the responsibility off on someone, anyone, else. This quest wasn't supposed to be like this. He was only supposed to grab a Gleed healer and come back, not face off against brigands! The responsibility remained his as leader of the group though. With a gut-wrenching sigh, he made his decision.

"They have answered our questions. We'll tie them up on the side of the road and leave them behind." He announced.

The brigands gave a sigh of relief and even presented their hands eagerly. Tobias grabbed a length of rope from Jerome's wagon and bound them hand to foot. It was unlikely that they would be able to untie those knots themselves, and unless they had friends in the woods they would be stuck there until the next wagon or passerby came. Jerome had said it was a heavily traveled road though, which meant the odds were good that they would eventually discovered.

As the small party made its way along the bend, Alan couldn't help but twist back to look at the two huddled figures leaning against a tree until the last possible moment. It looked to him as if they were frantically trying to undo the knots, but Alan doubted they would have any luck. If Tobias tied a knot, it could sometimes take a lever or tool to undo them. He was very good at making tight, small knots.

Alan twisted back around in his seat. He kept a sharp grip on his spear and both eyes scanned the road ahead. Although they had defeated the attack by the footpads, he was sure that it would not be the end of it. At least my conscious is clean. he sighed in relief. He had killed only in self-defense. It wasn't much, but it made him feel better. That feeling didn't last as he turned his mind towards the architect of the attack. Jones seemed the man that once he had set his mind to accomplish something, he would see to it that it was done. With a chill, he wondered what else lay in store for them.