The ground beneath the overgrown forest was almost wholly covered by a layer of roots, with mounds of mulched leaves and the occasional patch of dirt beneath it all. There wasn’t a single even surface to step on, forcing them to move forward slowly and deliberately.
Captain Rianne was leading them, following the trail her men had found earlier – bloody handprints on the sides of the tree trunks. Despite this rather obvious trail left behind by the group of terrorists, it quickly proved difficult to follow them as the somewhat clear path they took came to an abrupt end.
“We’ve come to the end of the newer growth,” Captain Rianne spoke in a low voice. “It’s centuries old from this point on,” she gestured toward the end of the path.
Midhir felt his chest tighten as he looked ahead. The forest was a lot thicker, and even less welcoming from this point on. The network of roots they had been walking on had been contained to just perturbing from the earth so far, but beyond this point, that wasn’t the case anymore. The roots reached waist-height with ease, and thick, black vines covered most of the tree trunks, hanging from the branches.
“We shouldn’t go further,” one of the soldiers muttered, tightly clenching his hands around the hilt of his sword. “The Old Gods have forsaken this place, none should venture there.” His voice was shaky, his fear palpable.
Captain Rianne shot a sharp glance at the frightened soldier. “Would you have us leave that man to die?” she hissed, “I want no cowards who would place their lives before those of our people under my command. Leave – we will venture deeper.”
While the soldier visibly flinched and shook his head, Midhir turned his attention away, to his surroundings. The handprints were nowhere to be seen. The clearly visible trail they followed so far had come to an end, and he couldn’t imagine finding anything in this forest without some sort of clue.
“Are there any places of interest further away?” he kept his voice low as he glanced at Alistair.
The young noble pursed his lips and pondered a while. “I’m not certain,” he replied as Captain Rianne and her troops searched for a trail to follow. “If I’m not mistaken, there should be some old altars and monuments to the Old Gods further up north,” Alistair continued with a scowl. “Do you think they took their captive there?”
Midhir nodded. “Didn’t the alchemists also worship the Old Gods?”
Alistair tightened his grasp on the shaft of his spear. “I believe so, but do you think these people follow those beliefs?” He made a vague gesture southeast. “Alchemists wouldn’t go around burning the market square.”
“With no trail to follow, it might be our best bet,” Midhir replied with a shrug, shooting a glance at Captain Rianne and her troops. They had spread out a little bit, still searching for handprints.
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“Midhir might be right,” Arwen quietly spoke. “Also, don’t you think these handprints were a little too convenient?” She raised her own hand and looked at her palm. “I can’t imagine what kind of a wound someone needs to sustain to somehow manage to dip his hand into blood completely, and still be able to walk.”
Her words caused a moment of pause between the four of them. Then, Willow suddenly went pale. “We’ve spread out looking for clues.”
“All troops to me!” Alistair shouted at the top of his lungs as soon as the young woman’s words hit him.
Something whistled through the air. Someone let out a scream that was cut short, and the sound of something heavy falling to the ground echoed. Then, the air filled with whistles.
Midhir’s hand went to his earring, but he only grasped the air as he went to summon the stake. His eyes widened. “Crystal tools aren’t working!” He shouted as arrows flew from all over, hitting the soldiers who were too slow to hide behind cover.
An arrow grazed past Willow’s cheek. Her eyes widened before she grabbed Arwen and dove into cover behind one of the wider trees.
Midhir leapt behind a tree as well, soon followed by Alistair. Pressing their backs against the tree, they took a moment to breathe and reorient their surroundings in their mind’s eye.
“They’ve surrounded us,” Alistair whispered through his gritted teeth. “Do you see Liara?”
“I saw her dive to cover,” Midhir said, peeking behind the tree they leaned against. An arrow grazed his shoulder, forcing him to pull back quickly. “Crystal tools aren’t working, they have a crystal staff user – a powerful one.”
Blood drained from Alistair’s face. “What?” he breathed in.
“Willow!” Midhir, called out. “Tell me you’re both alive,”
“We’re ok!” her voice reached his ears. “For now,” she added.
He breathed a sigh of relief, but that relief only lasted a moment as another scream reached their ears. “They’re charging us!” Someone shouted, but his words ended with an abrupt gasp.
The sound of metal hitting metal echoed in the forest. “Now!” Alistair hissed and leapt out of cover.
Midhir followed him without hesitation. They rushed over the uneven terrain, towards the cloaked and robed figures fighting off Captain Rianne’s troops.
“Look out!” Willow shouted behind him as he noticed a shadow descending on him. He threw himself aside, hitting his back against a tree as one of the ambushers landed where he was just standing. He noticed the glimmer of a dagger and raised his own blade to defend against it.
As his opponent rushed towards him, the sharp end of a rapier suddenly burst out of his chest, covered in blood. The man’s eyes widened for a split second as he looked down in surprise, then Willow pulled her blade out of his body, letting the man’s body collapse.
Another whistle sounded in the air, and a new volley of arrows began to rain down. He pulled Willow behind a tree, and watched Arwen hide behind another one. The sound of arrows hitting the trees echoed, prompting them to dash out of cover again.
By then, Alistair and Captain Rianne had dispatched of most of their assailants they could reach, but their forces had dwindled terribly as well. Out of the two dozen soldiers accompanying them, only half a dozen weren’t gravely wounded, and about a dozen were rendered incapacitated.
Midhir clenched his fists. “We need to hurry,” he hissed, then turned to his classmate behind him. “Arwen, can you heal them?”
“Right away,” she took a step towards the wounded and dying, only for her whole body to shake. Her eyes widened as she looked down, at the arrow that just dug into her own chest. Her staff slipped from her weakened hands as she collapsed.