Chapter 131:

Anton threw a lightning bolt at a Bandit, striking the man in the chest and felling him instantly. Two instantly replaced and charged towards him. One glanced to the side as a sword cleaved through his head, embedding deep in his shoulder. Cetina grunted, wrenching the sword free and kicking the corpse at the other bandit. He stumbled at the sight of his dead friend, not that it truly mattered as another bolt of lightning struck his head. His skull evaporated into mist, his lifeless body careened to a halt a meter from Anton’s feet.

“They just keep coming,” Cetina grumbled, wiping the blood from her flushed face. “They’re all around us.”

“How many so far?” Anton spied a small band climbing a mound to launch arrows at the White Dog mercenaries.

He threw a fireball, catching the men in a small roaring inferno. The sight of charring men screaming was something he hoped never to grow accustomed to.

“I don’t know.” Cetina recovered her shield, dropped to the ground to increase her speed. She glanced at her slick red sword. “I’ve killed twenty so far.”

“Twenty?” Anton saw another gap and exploited it with a lightning bolt, killing another bandit. “And you’re only this tired?”

Cetina laughed and raised her shield. An arrow struck the giant metal shield, Cetina grunted as she took the light shockwave.

“I’ve got him.”

Anton threw a fire lance over the mercenaries and struck another group of Bandits. It cut through and exploded into a shower of flame, gutting the target and setting the others ablaze. The trees immediately behind were almost cut in two and gushed out copious amounts of smoke as fire began to rise up its trunk.

“Can’t you just burn down the forest again?” A voice came from behind. “It worked last time.”

Duchess Belinda, wearing Anton’s cloak to hide her red dress, cowered near the wheel of the carriage. So far she had avoided all combat but her eyes constantly scanned the battle-line.

“We’re still in the forest,” Anton said. “And it’ll kill us too.”

“We could use some help over here!” Conrad ran towards Anton, pointing to the north of their small camp. His armour was bloodied, like Cetina’s, and held many fresh scratches.

“These Bandits shouldn’t be a problem for you.” Belinda began to stand up but Anton forced her down just as a bolt struck the top of the carriage. “Alfred always said they were weaker than mercenaries.”

“Unless they’re deserters.” Cetina offered.

“These aren’t bandits.” Conrad loaded a crossbow resting against the carriage. “Too well armed and determined.”

“I thought so.” Anton held the flame effigy tight in his hand. “I want to try something. This might make things easier.”

“Please hurry.” Belinda pleaded underneath his cloak.

Anton focused his mana to create a level one flame summon. It wasn’t going to be the strongest creature but the stress of battle raging around him was too great to try and create something larger. The effigy eased the formation of the mana structure but didn’t speed up the process. Time dragged as the ring spun around the semi-sphere, all the while he could hear men fighting to the death. The White Dog mercenaries had taken very few casualties but they were growing tired. And the bandits were relentless and seemingly endless in number.

As Cetina struck down another bandit attempting to attack a White Dog in the rear the magic was finished. A small flaming Imp-like creature crawled out of the flaming circle. It stared at him with unblinking, uncaring flaming eyes, simply waiting for a command.

“Kill the Bandits.”

The Imp imperceptibly nodded and ran into the fray. Its small legs climbed up the back of a White Dog Mercenary, yelping at the sudden burst of heat, and lunged at the head of a bandit. Anton saw the stupefaction before a small demonic creature tore into his face with red claws and a small flaming blade.

“Can you make any more of them?” Conrad chuckled nervously.

“A few.”

Anton heard the scream of another bandit felled by the Flaming Imp. As Anton began creating another, he wasn’t ready to try and create two at once, he felt the connection with the Imp fade. The Imp had been struck with a mace, its body broken and fading back into the ether. The Bandits cheered and redoubled their push.

The next Fire Imp emerged, identical to the first. Anton commanded it to attack the bandits but only their necks. Again the Imp agreed and ran into the fray. The Bandits, once so full of bravado and confidence began to run away as the Fire Imp ran through their numbers and cut at their throat. The bandits couldn’t strike him without attacking each other and simply broke. Even the sheer panic was enough to turn the tide.

“Why didn’t you tell me you could summon familiars?” Belinda asked, thankfully still remaining low.

“I haven’t done it in combat before.” Anton smiled at the Duchess. Her face quivered in slight fear as she watched the battle unfold.

Maybe I should try two at once…No. If I did create an Abomination that would be the end of us. It doesn’t take that long after all.

Anton created another four Fire Imps and set them loose into the Bandits. The sight of the small flaming creatures slashing and stabbing at their armour, their flaming hands and daggers easily tore through their light armour, was wonderful and a great relief. Suggestions of cooking pork filled the air, disquieting Anton’s stomach.

“Let’s see how many more of you there are.”

Anton created a lightning crow. It too waited patiently for its order.

“Fly into the sky and tell me how many Bandits there are.”

He was thankful that the summons could understand complex orders. Perhaps they borrowed pieces of information from his mind, like what an enemy actually looked like. The bird soared into the air, returning after Anton summoned another Fire Imp.

“How many?” Conrad asked.

Anton clicked his tongue. “Well, if this guy is correct, there’s another two hundred bandits coming towards us.”

“Fuck’s sake!” Conrad glanced at Belinda. “Apologies for the rude words, Duchess.”

Belinda chuckled nervously, waiving down his concerns from her almost prone position.

“But there’s three in that group that are different.” Anton continued. “Two are wearing red robes and one brown.”

“Oh no.” Cetina gripped her shield tight and moved next to Anton.

“Mages?” Conrad swore again. “We don’t have enough archers or crossbowmen to deal with them.”

“I’m not going to be much use,” Belinda said. “I barely know a few spells, and I’m not very powerful.”

A bandit broke through the perimeter to the east. Instead of attacking the rear of the defending mercenaries he charged straight at Belinda, his eyes spoke of the riches he would receive for delivering the fatal blow. Belinda’s hand wrenched her silver charm from her chest and held it towards the bandit.

“A snake of wrath and flame!”

A small snake of flame erupted from Belinda’s tightly clutched charm. The bandit raised his iron shield to block the strike but Belinda directed it over and onto his head. He screamed as the fire melted his face and his body collapsed.

“I...I actually killed one.” Belinda gasped, frowning at the dead body. “That’s the first person I’ve ever killed.”

“It’s not easy,” Cetina said. “Hopefully something you don’t have to get used to.”

“As a Duchess, I shouldn’t even be fighting.” Belinda pulled the cloak tight around her body, the fire charm remained clutched tight in her hands.

Cetina tapped Anton’s arm. “I can see them.”

Out of the gloom of the forest, Anton saw the bright robes of two Fire Mages and a brown robed mage, presumably an Earth Mage, lurking in the shadows. The Fire Mages appeared to be of similar height, build and even facial structure.

Are all Fire Mages twins or something? It’s too late to get Verona and Kal here. If they were to break the portal then it’d be all over.

“If we beat these three I’m sure the enemy will scatter,” Anton said, preparing another Fire Imp. “Though this could get messy. I’ve never gone against a Principle Mage before.”

“You mean you killed them right away, right?” Conrad’s worry only deepened when Anton shook his head.

“Stay close Cetina. If you see an opportunity to flank them or something then take it.” Cetina nodded seriously to his words. “But don’t get yourself killed, okay?”

“I think if you died Verona and Kal would kill me.” Cetina chuckled nervously. “That was one of the things they told me.”

Anton, creating another Lightning crow, directed his summons to finish off the bandits to their rear. The three mages stopped at the edge of the battle but didn’t immediately attack. Anton wished his summons to move faster and they responded, after taking some more of his mana. It wasn’t much but the drain was constant and noticeable.

“By the light of the fire, strike down my enemies!” Both Fire Mages yelled over the clamour of battle.

From the tops of their staves, two large fireballs grew and flung themselves towards the line of mercenaries and bandits.

They don’t give a shit about who they hit. At least I’m not that bad.

Anton was too far away to use the magic shield so he created two small lightning bolts and threw them at the Mage’s magic. His were faster but not as powerful. Upon touching they exploded, causing the fireballs to disintegrate and throwing their contents over the bandits. The embers weren’t lethal but enough to blunt the bandit assault.

“By the light of the fire, strike down my enemies!” The Fire Mages shouted again. Anton didn’t like the silence and inaction of the Earth Mage. It all felt very reminiscent of the battle against Ferula’s Strega Witches.

This time Anton summoned a Fire Shield and pushed it away as far as he could safely manage. Cetina moved in front and readied her shield to take the strike if it failed. The fireballs collided with the magical shield, Anton felt them tearing through but his magic held.

As the Fire Mages prepared another attack the Earth Mage was clearly finishing his spell.

“Not exactly going to wait for that one,” Anton mumbled.

Anton threw a Lightning Lance at the mages, dropping the shield at the last moment. One Fire Mage and the Earth Mage threw up a magical defence, a fire shield and one made from wet dirt, while the second Fire Mage stood stunned at the blast coming towards him. A faint circle of fire began to emerge but it was too late. Without a shield the lance hit the Mage square in the gut, cutting right through him and into a tree behind. Lightning arced off the lance after passing through his body and struck some retreating bandits. The tree’s leaves sputtered and smouldered from the raw energy flowed into it.

“Brother!” The Fire Mage shouted, dropped his shield and raced to his side.

As he cradled his brother Anton threw a small barrage of lightning bolts followed by a fire lance. He was so distraught that he couldn’t create a shield. The Earth Mage could. A wall of mud, literally sucked from the ground, blocked the strikes. The lance bore through the shield but another layer of mud snuffed out the fire.

“Get it together.” The Earth Mage snapped at the Fire Mage, still hidden by the wall. He sounded older but the cloak hid such features. “This one’s different. If I’d finished my spell this would have been over. No more messing about. It’s already cost one life.”

A few more, actually.

“I…Right.”

“He’s a Glyph mage. Remember to unravel his magic whenever you can.”

Anton quickly checked on his summons. They were still fighting and the White Dog Mercenaries were winning easily now. Only half the Bandits remained and quickly fell to numerically superior and more organised forces. Anton called off the Lightning crows and directed them to perch on a tree overlooking the Mages. Hopefully, they would be distracted by him and not notice the birds. The Imps were directed towards the Mages. Both Mages were shocked to see the Fire Imps running towards them, not screaming or hollering but with a silent desire to kill.

“A Summoner too!” The Earth Mage yelled. “I’ve got this.”

He tapped his staff on the ground, the charm on top glowed brightly. “By the coldness of the earth, of its unending depths, strike down this foolish trespasser!”

Couldn’t he have come up with a better chant? Belinda said that it only helps them remember the mathematics…

Anton threw another lightning lance as small chunks of dirt ripped free of the ground, reforming themselves into long, thin shards. They shot forward and smashed through the Imps. Anton raised another shield, lightning this time, as the stone shards continued their trajectory. Large puffs of dust came through his side of the shield. Unfortunately, the bandits and mercenaries still in that path were cut down. It wasn’t many on their side but Anton still hated the loss.

I’ve still got the Lightning Crows above them. Should I use a Tetrahedron bomb on them? See how much damage it does to people? I think I am close enough.

Just as Anton readied attack again he noticed the Earth Mage was still speaking, mumbling under his breath from behind the relative safety of his damaged earthen shield, but the words spilling from his mouth weren’t gibberish. Something was happening to his lightning shield. Although the mana drain hadn’t changed the shield flickered and grew weak.

Fucker’s breaking down my magic!

Anton’s leg suddenly felt cold. Dirt covered his leg up to his thigh. It felt like iron, worse still it was slowly crushing down.

“Cetina! A little help.”

Cetina took one look, dropped her sword and rammed the edge of her shield into the dirt. A slight dent emerged, one that quickly smoothed over.

“Fine then.” Anton created a Lightning Tetrahedron bomb. “Let’s see what you can do with this.”

Anton threw the bomb forward with all his might. Just like the Lightning shield it flickered and lost its form, turning into a Lightning sphere. The surviving fire mage chanted something towards his magic and reduced it again before it struck the earthen shield, even with tears streaming down his dirty face he could still fight.

“I’m already hating Principle mages.” Anton formed another lightning lance.

The Earth Mage, in the middle of chanting something else, stopped. He slammed his staff into the ground, another wall of dirt rose up but angled this time. The lightning lance struck the wall and bounced away before slamming into a tree. The old tree exploded into a thousand flying pieces of wood. A Lightning Crow faded from his control.

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“I saw what you were doing.” The Earth Mage spoke smugly, even with splinters covering his side and back. “Did you think you could hide that summon?”

His remaining Lightning Crow rested in the trees some distance away. Too far away to strike the Earth Mage, for now at least. More worryingly the dirt binding his leg continued to press down. He could feel something trying to cut its way through too.

Let’s not worry about incurring Nithroel’s wrath anymore.

Anton created a fire ring and released it underneath the mage's feet, just as both were about to unleash another attack. The Fire Mage’s eyes shot to the ground as it began to redden and the grass burn.

“Shit. Too much-” The ground beneath the Earth Mage quivered before erupting and throwing him to safety, landing in a cradle of mud some distance away. Anton threw another lightning bolt but it was blocked.

The Fire Mage was loathed to flee from his dead brother but knew he had little choice. He flung himself from the flaming ground just before the column of flame erupted, consuming everything in its wake. Trees burst into flame and the very air roared, stunning the few surviving Bandits. The White Dog Mercenaries had seen this before and didn’t hesitate, carving through the remaining bandits.

“I’ll take the Flame Mage.” Cetina gripped her shield tight. “Take care of that Earth Mage.”

“Don’t die on me, Cetina.” Anton grit his teeth through the pain of screaming from his leg. Already he could hear his bones cracking.

Cetina ran towards the Fire Mage, still stumbling away from the flame. He stopped before inspecting the crater where his brother once lay. Now nothing but molten dirt and stone remained. He saw Cetina approach, wearing her brightly coloured clothes, and bared his teeth in anger.

Anton prayed that Cetina would, at the very least, not get herself killed before he’d dealt with the Earth Mage. He summoned a lightning ring above the Earth Mage.

“Again?!” The dirt shot him away again, well before the lightning bolts rained down. As he flew through the air he fired off another barrage of stone fragments. Anton blocked them with a lightning shield. “How much mana does this fool have?”

“A lot,” Anton said. “But I still need practice, it seems.”

A large dirt bullet travelled low along the ground to strike Anton’s knee above the strangling dirt. Anton created a small lightning shield but it wasn’t strong enough to destroy it. It hit his kneecap, shattering it in a blinding burst of pain. He chanted a prayer to numb all sense of pain, which appeared to work, though it now just felt like his whole body was recovering from anaesthesia. The Earth Mage prepared another landing cradle but Anton wasn’t going to let him rest. He directed the lightning summon to attack whilst preparing another lightning ring, but this time angled it vertically rather than horizontal and pushed it right next to the Earth Mage.

The Earth Mage nearly laughed before preparing to jump again. “Ridiculous” A smirk grew on his face and the dirt folded in, ready to throw him out of range of Anton’s strike. “How’s that foot?”

“I can’t feel it.” Anton smiled. “But I’m not worried.”

A small bolt of lightning smashed into the Earth Mage’s body. Dirt burst from his body as every muscle twitched and tried to contract. Anton almost felt the creature was proud of itself, if a summon could do such a thing. The Earth Mage’s eyes flicked towards the fully formed lightning ring, a faint tear in his eyes. Hundreds of lightning bolts flew forth, almost half striking the poor Earth Mage. His outstretched hand took the first bolt, the stump the next. Every strike blew away more pieces of his flesh until there was nothing lest bar a charred mist. The dirt coiling around Anton’s leg cracked and fell away. Blood gushed from the ruined leg. Not one bone or piece of muscle was intact, even his armour had crumpled and forcibly moulded around his ruined limb. Thankfully the scales weren’t visible.

Fuck! Thank the Gods he focused on keeping me still. Imagine if that had gotten up around my throat? I think that Cetina would be joining me. Speaking of.

Anton chanted a quick prayer to partially heal his wound before turning his attention to Cetina. A large fireball struck her shield as she closed on the terrified Fire Mage. His back had been badly burned by the flame pillar but he could still fight. He summoned another ball of flame as Cetina dropped her sword and gripped her shield with all her might. He managed another attack, the inside of the shield glowed red. Cetina shouted in pain, her metal gauntlets smoking, before ramming into him with her shield. A terrible scream and the sound of sizzling meat filled the air. Cetina forced the burning shield onto his face and chest before he managed to kick her off with a small blast of flame at point blank range. Cetina landed on her back next to him, the shield well out of her reach. She struck his mouth with the back of her mailed fist and drew a small dagger with the other. The mage caught it in his hand but wasn’t strong enough to overpower Cetina. His eyes, wild with terror and uncontrollable panic, watched the knife’s edge sink through his eviscerated fingers and deep into his throat. After a second of struggling his body fell limp, the staff rolled out of his hand and onto the scorched grass.

“Fucking hell,” Cetina grumbled.

Anton smiled, but he couldn’t join her just yet. He summoned another Lightning crow and sent them both to work, dealing with the last of the Bandits. Within a minute every bandit lay dead or dying slow and terrible deaths. The White Dog’s shouted a cheer of victory. Whatever Belinda was paying them it wasn’t enough.

“Are you alright?” Anton asked Cetina, still lying down and catching her breath.

“I…I don’t think so.” Cetina laughed as she held up her gloves. The metal held scorch marks while the leather underneath had blackened and warped. “I can barely move my hands. They sting like crazy too.”

Anton reached down and pulled Cetina up. She hesitated to take his hand but one stern look was enough to change her mind.

“Thanks,” Cetina mumbled.

“I should be thanking you.” Anton laughed, patting her shoulder. “If you hadn’t distracted that Fire Mage I could be dead. Not to mention-”

“Your foot!” Cetina knelt down, inspecting the damage. A terrified wince covered her face. “Fuck. They told me not to let you get hurt.”

Anton laughed, shaking his head. “I can’t feel much out of this but it’s not that bad. I’ve taken the edge off it.”

“They’ll kill me if they know what happened to you.”

“Same.” Anton held his finger to his lips. “So, how about we keep this our little secret. Okay?”

Cetina smiled nervously but agreed nonetheless. She offered her shoulder for Anton but Anton politely declined, he could still move fine. For now at least.

“Is that all of them?” Conrad asked, still at Belinda’s side. His sword was freshly bloodied with another dead bandit lying at his feet.

“For now.” Anton limped towards the carriage. Cetina grunted and took his arm, holding it over her shoulder for support. “Thanks, Cetina.”

“It’s not a problem, Anton.” Cetina smiled. “You’re actually quite light.”

“Are you saying you’re heavy?” Anton laughed. “That’s not something a woman should be saying about themselves.”

Cetina flushed a little, shrugging and pulling Anton forward with renewed vigour.

“Are you two done flirting?” Conrad asked, a slight sneer on his face.

“Not with this foot. I think I’ll need Cetina for a while yet.”

Conrad took Belinda’s hand and gently helped her to her feet.

“Do we continue or rest here for the night?” Belinda asked, brushing small clods of dirt off the cloak. “Ugh. I wish that Alfred was here. He would know what to do.”

You are a little lost without him, aren’t you?

“I say we rest here,” Conrad said. He glanced at the dead Bandits and few dead mercenaries. “My men are tired and wounded. They won’t be going much further tonight.”

“Can you actually heal that leg?” Belinda asked, worry on her fine-featured face. “I saw that Earth Mage Entomb your leg. I didn’t think I’d see that magic again. You’re lucky he didn’t bind the other one too.”

“He just wanted me to stop moving.” Anton laughed. Now the pain was truly starting to return. He winced and Cetina held him tighter. “He was about to do something but…He never got that chance. He also had to keep an eye on my Lightning Crows.”

“Is there any chance that you can heal my men?” Conrad asked. “We’ll move a lot slower having to carry them.”

“Sure.” Anton glanced at Cetina. “Just gather them into one area. I’ll make sure they don’t die but I can’t do much else for them right now. Over the next few days, they’ll be back to normal.”

“That’ll be great.” Conrad whistled at his men, many hunching over and using their weapons to prop themselves up. He issued orders and the men began to organise themselves.

Conrad shook his head as several dead White Dog Mercenaries were laid before him. “Damn shame. At least you can do more than those Church fuck’s can. Everyone you can save I will personally thank you for.”

Anton nodded. “Cetina, I might need your help to move me while I do this. My foot’s still playing up.”

“Shouldn’t you deal with that first?” She asked worryingly.

“Not when there are these dying people.” Anton waved his free hand towards the bleeding mercenaries. “We’re going to need them all.”

---[]---

Anton felt utterly exhausted as he sat down on the step of the carriage. He had saved every White Dog Mercenary that wasn’t dead, though they would still be in considerable pain for some time. He didn’t have the reserves to heal them completely just in case there was more fighting. So far the Lightning Crows hadn’t spotted anything but it was better to be safe than sorry. He could heal them fully when they reached Maxill and some semblance of safety. So long as the city hadn’t fallen, a real possibility. Belinda didn’t like the implications either and retired early. She held onto Anton’s cloak and wrapped it tight around her body as she laid down onto the seat of the carriage. It wasn’t the best place to sleep but she endured it regardless, she had little choice. Cetina had jumped through the portal to Atros and returned with bundles of healing herbs and some Karak fruit for Anton. The mercenaries were surprised and exceedingly grateful to have them. It was nowhere near as powerful as his magic but it was leagues better than nothing.

“What a day,” Anton grumbled quietly. “Do you think the Earth Mage was going easy on me?”

“I don’t think so.” Cetina knelt before him and held his mangled boot. “But I’m not a mage, so I really wouldn’t know. Since he’s a…Principle Mage, maybe those little summons of yours kept him on his toes? If he was going to use a big magic you could hit him with one of those and kill him while he couldn’t use his own magic. But-”

Cetina glanced around. There were still far too many people awake, many glancing towards an attractive young Bebbezzarian woman kneeling before him holding his leg.

“Maybe not here,” Cetina mumbled.

“Don’t say it like that.” Anton chuckled. “There are not many private places around here. I’m proud that you didn’t freak out when everyone started to undress at the lake.”

Cetina chuckled. “Only because you told me it was going to happen. Never thought I would see almost a hundred naked men. If I wrap my cloak around it I should be able to hide…it.”

No one looked towards them, Anton gave her a quick nod. Cetina removed her gloves and unbuckled Anton’s boot. Wet and sticky blood seeped from the leather and metal buckles, Cetina groaned and gently pulled it down.

“I think you need a new one.” Cetina ran her finger along the stitches. Most were broken and fell apart under her light touch. “There’s no way you should be using this. Just about everything’s broken and drenched in blood.” She looked up at him with her single eye. “Your blood.”

Anton waved her concerns down. “It’s fine. Tethra can fix it, though it’ll cost a bit.”

“She can fix armour too?” Cetina raised a black brow.

“Of course.” Anton scratched his cheek as Cetina began to pull the boot free. “Though we discovered that by accident. We don’t need to remove it entirely. I don’t know if there’s anything stuck it’ll fuse with me when I heal myself.”

It was quite stuck so she had to twist and pull hard, something that sent sharp pangs of pain up Anton’s leg.

“Please be a little more gentle.” Anton pleaded. “Especially since…”

Cetina glanced around, no one was close enough to listen in. Except for Belinda. A quick glance revealed she was in deep asleep.

“If someone heard that they’d think that you were doing more than just taking off my boot.”

Cetina’s eye glanced to his crotch and her tanned face turned red. She scrunched her hands and sighed.

“I can see that. But…” She coughed and looked away. “Anyway, let’s deal with this first.”

First?

“This could be a little painful.” Cetina continued to try and remove his boot but it was a slow process. She kept glancing up, judging his face for any sign of discomfort. “We’ll just get it half way then I’ll get some water.”

“Cetina? I’m sorry that I’ve dragged you into the mess-”

“It’s fine.” Cetina smiled, taking the opportunity to pull down a little more. “I chose to join you all in this. I know that, if I asked, you would have dropped me off in Bebbezzar. So stop worrying.”

“Okay.” Anton smiled as Cetina pulled the boot halfway off.

Cetina immediately pulled her cloak tight around his foot. Nearly every scale had broken while his skin had stretched to the point of leaking blood. The scale ridges had collapsed and everything was horrendously inflamed. And this was after he’d healed himself, though lightly.

“Wow.” Cetina chuckled. She gently touched the bloody scales, eliciting a wince from Anton. “If this had been anyone else they wouldn’t be walking. Perhaps ever.” She smiled. “You’re very lucky you have Tethra’s power.”

“I think I am.” Anton chanted a prayer aloud, healing his foot slightly. “Without her, I’d long be dead.”

Cetina began scraping away the blood. “Have you ever thought of selling that ability? I’m sure you’d make a lot of money from it.”

“I actually have.” Anton flexed his toes. “And I think I could do some good too. But the only place I could do that is Graterious, maybe Seocuria, and even they don’t like the Old Gods. Perhaps the Clansmen might allow it. If they don’t kill us on sight.”

Cetina slowly nodded and continued cleaning. A pleasant silence filled their air between them, ruined slightly by the groans of the wounded White Dog Mercenaries.

“Cetina? What did Verona and Kal tell you? Apart from keeping me safe?”

Cetina stopped, her face and body turned rigid. “I-They told me to take care of you. Especially when they’re not here.” A reddening face looked at him. “If things become an issue at night…”

“Are you serious?” Anton forced himself to remain calm. “They asked you to-”

Cetina nodded. “I don’t have an-”

The Lightning Crow sent a message through the thought tether, a new force of bandits were approaching. About one hundred and fifty with no signs of mages.

“We’ve got company.” Anton raised his hand, thankful he didn’t have to continue the line of conversation. “Quite a lot too.”

Cetina deftly refastened his boot. “Where?”

“From the north.” Anton held his lightning effigy and summoned four additional Lightning Crows. He directed them into the sky, just above the tree-line and towards the Bandits. “We might not have to fight this time.”

“I’ll get my shield.”

“I wonder what the range of these things is?” Anton asked aloud, watching the small birds fly into the sky.

As Cetina took up position near him, her shield and sword ready, Anton directed the Lightning Crows to dive through the canopy, fire off a single lightning bolt and dart back to safety. While not the most honourable fight it would definitely be the safest. Small flashes of light and crackles of thunder alerted the resting White Dog Mercenaries.

“What’s happening?” Conrad asked, his hands were filled with bloodstained bandages wrapped around healing herbs.

“Another attack.” Anton sighed. “It’s some distance away. I wanted to test something.”

Anton saw the panicking bandits, huddling together in the darkness, illuminated by the lightning, as archers fired wildly into the sky in a vain attempt to hit the soaring Lightning Crows. Only a few were falling with every pass but they were completely helpless against this style of attack.

“It is a little unfair.”

Conrad glanced at Cetina. “Please warn us next time. You both need to sleep.”

“I will.”

Conrad returned to his duties. Cetina kept her stance until the sounds of lightning receded.

“Is it done now?”

The five Lightning Crows gently perched onto the carriage. “For now. I think that other group was trying to catch up to this one. Any idea who sent them?”

“I haven’t checked their bodies,” Cetina said. “I was a little more worried about the person with a crushed leg.”

“I think we know who sent them.” Anton stretched out his legs. “Let’s have a little look after I send these to have a final search.”

The five Lightning Crows darted into the sky.

“I think that the second Fire Mage still has his tome in one piece.” Anton took his first few steps. After another healing it was acceptable. “I wonder what else he has.”

“Please don’t try anything stupid.” Cetina took his arm to lessen the load on his leg.

He silently thanked her and they walked to the perimeter of their camp. Many of the Bandits had already been stripped of anything valuable before the bodies were dumped into a great pile. Anton didn’t have any desire for their gear, their coin would be a much-needed bonus for the White Dog mercenaries. If they found something truly incriminating he hoped they would share it, so he wouldn’t need to compel anyone to speak with his magic.

The second Fire Mage remained where Cetina had felled him, the blood around his body had dried and mixed with the dirt and leaves, waxy eyes stared endlessly into the sky.

“There it is.” Anton pointed at a small book on his hip. “I wonder if it’s an Intermediate Principle Magic book. We don’t have one of those.”

Cetina ripped it free and gingerly opened the pages. It wasn’t an Intermediate book, only a Beginner, but it wasn’t the same as the book provided by Ferula so Anton considered it a victory. Unfortunately whatever could have been learned from the other two Mages had been completely obliterated, one in a torrent of flame, the other in a barrage of lightning blasts.

Such a shame.

“Anything else?” Anton asked.

He flicked through the pages. These were still near indecipherable mathematical scrawls, but many notes had been written in the margins. It had been well used, soon it would be again.

“I’ve got something.”

Cetina reached around the man’s waist and drew out a small pouch. A roughly folded piece of paper lay within. Anton’s heart sunk, just like when he saw the map held by the Kobolds. The rough map showed the line of their journey as well as the estimated position of Atros. It wasn’t far off, not that it wouldn’t be that hard to see once free of the forest. Atros was the only source of smoke in the entire Kar Kingdom.

“Fuck’s sake.” Anton shook his head. “Again with this crap.”

“What?...Oh. They really do know where you are.”

“Belinda found it on her first try so it can’t be that hard.” Anton sighed. “Looks like we made the right decision.”

“There was another piece of paper in there.” Cetina pulled out a small scrap of rough paper. “I can’t read it though.”

Anton’s eyes scanned the paper. “It just tells them to kill Duchess Belinda. But no reward, strange for a mercenary. It does...Ah. It mentions their families.”

Anton looked at the corpse lying at their feet. “I don’t think they were actually that hostile.”

Cetina frowned. “Are you saying they were forced to fight?”

“Maybe.” Anton shrugged. “If they were being forced to fight they clearly weren’t fighting at their best.”

“So you got away easy?” Cetina winced.

Anton tapped the paper. “This last bit. It mentions a child. I don’t think I need to tell you how threatening someone’s kid makes them change. But it doesn’t bode well for me against a determined and skilled Principle Mage. Still. Maybe if I can use multiple lances at once, throw in a few other things as well. That should tear them to shreds.”

“Aren’t you worried about that too?” Cetina looked very serious. “Verona and Kal told me they plan to have children before things get even more hectic, but they could become targets too. Right?”

“We’ll have to cross that bridge when we come to it. Besides, I’ve got a very good bodyguard, right?”

Cetina chuckled but the redness returned, along with the implanted knowledge of what a bodyguard was supposed to do at night. Anton sighed silently at his wives, most likely Verona, trying to corrupt Cetina’s mind.

“If we could get someone into the capital, if that’s where their children and families are being held, the Mages could help us form the inside. Something to talk about in the morning.

Three mercenaries approached. Their hands were filled with coins and other valuable trinkets taken from dead men. Eyes fell upon the dead Fire Mage.

“If you find anything magical do be careful.” Anton tapped Cetina’s shoulder and nodded back to the camp. “Any books, tomes, scrolls or whatever belong to us. Everything else is yours. But don’t you dare and try and take something that belongs to me, understood?”

The mercenaries took his words to heart and began to scavenge the nearby corpses.

Anton walked far more confidently than before. “I wonder what those two are going to say about all this.”