The battle that raged on was fearsome and grueling. Despite the bandits boasting bigger numbers and powerful weapons, they were at a discernible disadvantage against the band of knights who were veritable warriors. Sensing that he was the commander, five bandits converged on Fendrel all at once only to be swiftly and decisively dealt with. He had such precise and adroit movements that the final thoughts of his opponents coincided on wondering whether they were receiving heavenly judgment. Victory appeared all but assured for Fendrel and his knights as the battle progressed until a single bandit armed with a broadsword achieved the inconceivable by defeating six of the knights all on his own. His appearance was indistinguishable from the other bandits but his feats were nothing short of a miracle. He eventually emerged as the sole figure from the bandit group who not only remained standing but also unscathed. Even more incredible was the fact that none of his strikes on his adversaries were lethal.
“Leave him to me, Sir Fendrel!” the impetuous Galen exclaimed as he galloped towards the peculiar figure.
The confrontation was fierce but short-lived. Each of Galen’s ferocious strikes were fended off by his mysterious opponent with what appeared to be little effort much to the shock of the onlooking knights, including Fendrel. Eventually a well-placed shot at the armor’s weak spot around the knee sent Galen out of commission with a suppressed whimper.
“You are quite an interesting fellow. What is your name?” Fendrel asked in a voice infused with curiosity and fascination as he unmounted his horse and gazed at his subject of intrigue. Unlike the other bandits who relied on brute strength and the toughness of their weapons, he was an exceptional swordsman with remarkable skill which enabled him to defeat his opponents–all of whom were outstanding knights. This observation did not escape the perceptive eyes of Fendrel who followed his fight with Galen with palpable interest.
“Daegal. Conrad. Gerod. Finnian. Cassian. Benedict. Randolph. Johann. Theodore. These are the names of the lives you stole! Don’t you dare think that I’ll be answering to the likes of you!” the lone bandit cried out with rage, anguish, and grief interwoven together as he too unmounted his horse and treaded towards Fendrel. His voice began unraveling what his helmet had concealed.
“I did offer your leader a choice. I had hoped he would make the right one because it might have led to something other than all this bloodshed…” Fendrel retorted with the unwavering genteel and cool demeanor that defined him.
It all happened in the blink of an instant–the precipitous rush by the bandit, the drawing of the swords, and their eventual clash. The incipient apprehension among the knights dissipated as their commander had a perspicuous upper-hand over his opponent who had until then appeared to be indomitable. Following the opening clash, the bandit was unable to keep up with the fluidity and precision of Fendrel’s movements and failed to make a single connecting strike. Fendrel’s lack of armor, in conjunction with his lean frame, turned out to be an asset rather than weakness as it provided him with unmatched agility in contrast to his opponent’s sturdy build weighed down by the armor. After landing several deep slashes at critical points with his saber, Fendrel ceased his onslaught and pointed the edge of his blade sullied with blood towards his weary adversary.
“You have done well to have lasted this long. I’ll be offering you the same choice as your leader. Yield now and you will live” Fendrel asked intently, his eyes focused on the battered figure before him.
A foreboding silence prevailed. It felt as if time had come to a complete stop until the bandit regained composure and moved in to attack without a single exchange. Fendrel once again successfully defended himself against the first strike and shifted to an offensive stance. The fight appeared to be headed towards a repeat of the first round which had transpired only moments earlier when Fendrel’s attacks began to be successfully warded off by the bandit. It was as if he was able to predict his every successive movement. Slowly but surely, Fendrel was being pushed back by his enigmatic opponent who had unmistakably begun to adopt and use Fendrel’s own moves against him. The clash continued until the masked bandit disarmed Fendrel with a conclusive strike, sending him stumbling to the ground.
“Looks like I get to be the one to choose the negotiating terms. Leave the forest at once with your men and no one else will get hurt” the masked bandit declared while holding the point of his sword towards the base of his foe’s neck.
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The incredible turn of events sent Fendrel’s band of knights into a state of great distress as they instantaneously moved to save their leader from his predicament. They stopped dead in their tracks when Fendrel unexpectedly motioned them to cease their advance.
“I see now. You were able to discern the pattern behind my movements and thus managed to adapt to them accordingly. You seem to have even picked up my techniques and incorporated them into yours to an astonishing level in the middle of our battle. Very impressive. Do you not intend to take my life to avenge your fallen comrades?” Fendrel inquired boldly with an inquisitive tone, looking up at the elevated figure before him.
“The truth is I do want to kill you. I do want to make you pay for what you have done. I do want to make you suffer! But if I act on my impulses here, I’ll never be able to face myself or the others again. All life is precious and that includes even you. We may be petty thieves but we do not steal the lives of others” the bandit towering above him replied with a voice interlaced with both pain and resolution.
“That’s quite an intriguing line of thought coming from a lowly criminal. Such idealism is inspiring but may prove to be fatally naive, especially on a battlefield…” Fendrel said, his voice gradually trailing off as he grasped a sword lying right next to him and sprung to his feet in the blink of an instant. He initiated the offensive onslaught, in a reversal of the beginning of their first and second duels, with significantly greater speed, ferocity, and unpredictability in his movements and strikes.
Initially overwhelmed by the speed of Fendrel's attacks, the bandit was once again able to adapt to the novel fighting style being utilized by his opponent mid-battle and offered significant resistance, appearing to be evenly matched. The pervasive suspense intensified among the spectating knights as the duel between their honorable Knight Commander and the solitary bandit approached a stalemate. The battle, however, reached a decisive conclusion with a sharp strike by the nimble Fendrel which created a deep incision in his opponent’s elbow region, disarming him. The broadsword fell into the hands of the victor followed by a well-placed kick to the gut which sent the defeated to the ground.
“I knew it! There is no way a lowlife can ever hope to match the likes of Sir Fendrel!” an ecstatic voice cried out from the lively onlookers.
“Teach that scoundrel a lesson for his insolence!” another voice cried out.
“I shall be executing you right here and right now. Do you still feel the same way about your choice to let me live?” Fendrel asked coldly, placing his newly acquired broadsword at the neck of its original wielder.
“I’m proud of the life I have lived so far and the choices I’ve made. I have no regrets” an unflinching voice emerged as Fendrel noticed a conflicting slight flinch.
Fendrel nudged the outstretched sword deeper into the helmet before making a brisk single thrust upwards, removing it from the bearer and finally revealing the face underneath. His curious gaze subsequently transitioned into one of awe and deeper intrigue: the undaunted face that lay before him looked no older than seventeen. He possessed an untidy appearance and yet there was an uncanny radiance emanating from his amber eyes and demeanor which captured the attention of the scrutinizing Fendrel.
“You are not how I imagined the most arduous foe I’ve encountered in quite a long time to be. You are but a boy with a long life ahead of you. I suggest you escape and try to get as far from here as possible if you do not wish to spend the rest of your life languishing inside a dirty prison cell” Fendrel softly stated, his empathy for the young bandit apparent.
“I’ll be sharing the same fate as my comrades” he replied instantly as looked at the bodies of his defeated comrades lying on the ground, either dead or seriously injured.
“But why? I do not understand. You are remarkably capable with immense potential. You can have a bright and exemplary future if you choose to pursue a different path instead of living in the forest as an outlaw and risking it all. Why are you willing to throw your life away so easily for others?” the puzzled knight commander exclaimed emphatically.
“Because this is my home. I won’t…abandon the people who gave me a place to return to” the beaten youth said.
“No place to return to, is it'' Fendrel said under his breath. He became lost in deep thought while locking his eyes with the figure before him.
“Your surviving comrades on the battlefield are quite badly injured and require immediate assistance from a healer. And it does not simply end here. His majesty is likely going to sentence you and them to death or life imprisonment for impeding the peace negotiations with Gunthamund and set an example to appease the ambassador and his aides whom you foolishly robbed. Therefore, I have a proposition for you: join my band of knights. You are talented with a sword but you still have a lot to learn. Becoming a knight will help you further develop and hone your skills while serving a purpose greater than you. As a knight serving under my regiment, you will automatically be offered immunity and thus pardoned. I also promise to offer my full support during the sentencing of your bandit associates by advocating for the most lenient sentence possible. So, what will your answer be?”
“I…accept…” the youthful bandit responded after palpable hesitation, “However, I do have my own terms as well. I intend to go back with everyone once they have completed serving their sentences. You aren’t offering to help me out of the goodness of your heart, are you?”
“Indeed, I’m not. I could use someone like you by my side so I’d say I’m mostly motivated by self-inclination. And a word of caution: while your sense of compassion for all human life is truly beautiful and admirable, you will come across those who not only do not share your ideals but also repudiate them. Anyways, let’s end the gloomy talk here. You may rise. What is your name?”, Fendrel asked with a mellow smile.