“Don’t harm the young Mage,” the Bandit Leader called out as he drew his sword, a huge, curved blade flickering in the firelight. “Take him alive. Kill the others.”
The Bandits around the camp drew crossbows and leveled them at Max and his party. Max held his staff before him. It would offer little protection, a shield it was not, but it was all he could place before him, his party, and the crossbows leveled at them.
As he calculated his odds of defeating this group of Bandits and came up with an answer that did little to comfort him, a thought occurred: why did they want to keep him alive?
The crossbow strings twanged all at once, crossbow bolts launching from their bows. In that moment, Elderon raised his hands in the air.
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> Elderon casts Protective Dome.
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A blue dome formed over the small group just as the crossbow bolts came toward them. The bolts ricocheted off except for one that came through the magic field, but its flight was slowed so much that it fell harmlessly to the ground.
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> Anita casts Bonus on the party.
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Max felt the Bonus wash over him. He knew any strike with his staff would find its mark and undoubtedly deliver moderate damage, an improvement for his attack.
The Bandits moved in, driven forward by shouts from their leader. They approached the blue sphere and attacked it with their heavy longswords. The blows deflected off the blue sphere with a shower of orange sparks.
“It won’t hold for long,” Elderon said as he cast a Shield spell over Max.
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> Elderon casts Magic Shield on Max.
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“We need to get away!” Elderon said.
“How can we outrun these guys?” Max said. “They have horses. We need to fight if we hope to survive.” His fingers gripped his staff. The Bonus from Anita and Elderon’s magic Shield gave him confidence, but it was only because there was truly no other option that he found courage.
“They have us surrounded,” Elderon said. “We can’t fight them like this! Walk with me, and we’ll back up to that wagon.” Elderon pointed to a large canvas-covered wagon at the edge of the circle.
“Yes,” Anita said. “That one is clear. No hidden dangers in there.”
Max walked with Anita and Elderon. The dome was shrinking, and every sword blow shrank it a little further. They finally got their backs to the large wagon and stood together. A line of Bandits advanced with their swords, beating the shrinking protective magical dome. Behind the line of Bandits, in the flickering firelight, the Bandit Leader stood and urged them forward. At his side was Jenna, and Max shuddered at how closely he had come to being seduced by her. But even now, with murder in her eyes, Max could feel himself being drawn to her with magical lust.
The dome shrank down so the edge was almost touching Max’s shoulder, drawing his attention away from the bandit and back to the problem at hand. He held up his staff to fend off a sword blow that came so perilously close the blade cut in through the dome. It was not only shrinking in size but also in strength and intensity. The dome’s deep-blue color had now become pale, and it was flickering like a flame about to be extinguished.
Anita began to cast Summon Roots. It leapt from her fingers the moment the sphere collapsed.
Instantly, they were on the defensive. The Bandits moved in, and swords clashed with sword and staff.
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> Bandit attacks Max.
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Max held up his staff sideways to defend a blow coming down hard, a two-handed strike from a big Bandit. It cut Max’s staff in two. He held the shattered pieces, one in each hand, stunned for a moment but mercifully still unharmed.
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> Elderon casts Fierce Wind.
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The wind blew away from Elderon, forcing the Bandits backward. The fire roared as the wind hit, and it sent the flames leaping over to the canvas covers of the wagons on the far side of the circle.
With the Bandits pushed back, Max could shoot with his catapult. Max dropped the two split ends of his staff and drew his catapult.
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> Max attacks Bandit causing minor damage.
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The Bandits on Max’s left were tangled up in the mass of roots that had sprung up from the ground. In front of them, the Bandits were being pushed into the fire by Elderon’s fierce wind spell. Many of them were now fleeing and beating out the flames that had caught fire on their baggy clothes.
On the right came the little reptiles. Max shot a bullet and took down one reptile in a single shot. They looked terrifying but had very limited Health.
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> Anita casts Charm Animal.
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The Charm spell enveloped the whole pack of reptiles and they stopped in their tracks. With a flick of her wrist, Anita sent them to attack the Bandits.
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> Max casts Magic Missile.
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The missile leapt from his fingers. He cast it more confidently this time, his hand gestures and the strange incantation all much more certain. The missile glowed more fiercely, and it struck a Bandit in the chest.
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> If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
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> Bandit takes moderate damage.
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> Bandit loses courage and flees.
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Anita’s sling was shooting one bullet after another. Elderon cast a Magic Missiles and six missiles slammed into a Bandit, causing critical damage. The Bandit lost courage and fled.
“They are running,” Max yelled as he cast his second Magic Missile at the fleeing Bandits.
On their left was the group who’d been caught by Anita’s Summon Roots spell. They were hacking away at the roots with their swords, but Max could see panic in their eyes. He shot a bullet from his sling and delivered minor damage with repeated strikes on the same Bandit. The Bandit broke free of the roots and ran away.
The Bandit Leader was yelling furiously at the fleeing Bandits but to no avail. He stared at Max, drank a potion, and advanced.
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> Bandit Leader takes Potion of Orc Strength.
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The remaining Bandits were running, some aflame, others with various degrees of damage. Maybe they had figured such a small group of adventurers would be an easy target. They had been wrong.
Elderon cast a shield on himself and stepped forward. He let his staff fall and drew his silver sword that glowed in the darkness, a white light in the night. He brought the sword around in a wide arc aimed at the head of the Bandit Leader.
But the Bandit Leader was a true fighter. He held his massive, curved sword with two hands and deflected Elderon’s swinging sword.
Max took aim with his catapult.
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> Max attacks Bandit Leader.
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> Attack absorbed; no damage done.
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“My bullet didn’t damage him,” Max called, loading a second and firing again on the Bandit Leader.
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> Attack absorbed; no damage done.
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“He is protected by some magical item,” Anita answered.
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> Bandit Leader attacks Elderon causing major damage.
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The sword struck Elderon hard, the magic Shield protecting him from critical damage, but he was instantly heavily injured and his Health reduced to medium in one hit.
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> Anita casts Extra Healing.
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Max drew his sword and rushed the Bandit Leader. The Bandit Leader watched him coming and made ready to defend. But Max didn’t stop to face him. He ran past and slashed with his sword as he went by.
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> Max attacks Bandit Leader causing minor damage.
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The Bandit swung his curved blade at Max, but Max had run out of range of the swinging sword. The Bandit Leader growled in frustration as the blade swished through the cold night air.
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> Elderon attacks Bandit Leader causing major damage.
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Max ran back at him again as the Bandit Leader turned his attention back to Elderon.
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> Bandit Leader attacks Elderon causing minor damage.
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> Max attacks Bandit Leader causing minor damage.
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The Bandit Leader stopped attacking Elderon and turned again to swing at Max.
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> Bandit Leader attacks Max causing major damage.
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> Elderon attacks Bandit Leader causing major damage.
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> Anita summons Magic Stone.
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> Anita attacks Bandit Leader causing minor damage.
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The Bandit Leader yelled in fury as his health plummeted and swung his sword at Elderon. The Wizard defended the blow but was forced backward by the power behind it.
Max rushed in again and struck the Bandit Leader.
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> Max attacks Bandit Leader major damage.
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> Bandit Leader has been defeated.
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> Max gains experience points.
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The Bandit Leader fell to his knees, his sword dropped at his side. Elderon reached out with his sword toward the Bandit’s throat and cut away a pendant that was hanging around his neck. The Bandit Leader shrank to a small man, no bigger than Max.
“They said you would be weak,” the Bandit Leader said before collapsing to the ground.
Anita brought Elderon his staff, and Elderon sheathed his sword and took the staff. He sent up a brilliant white light that illuminated the scene.
“We must leave. The Bandits have been scared off by a few simple spells, but they will start to come back.”
Max knelt over the Bandit Leader with the fallen pendant at his side.
“Don’t take that, Max,” Elderon said, stabbing the chain of the pendant with his staff and holding it to the ground. “It is a cursed item. Who knows what this poor fellow was before he was convinced to wear it.”
Max searched the Bandit Leader.
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> Max finds cursed pendant.
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> Max finds wooden dagger.
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> Max finds Hood of Sneaking.
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> Max finds 100 gold.
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He ignored the cursed pendant and dropped the gold into his satchel then inspected the hood.
“A Hood of Sneaking?” Elderon said. “If you thought your natural Sneak ability was good, you wait until you try that.”
Max put on the hood and instantly vanished in the shadows cast by Elderon’s white illumination. He slipped the hood back over his head and wore it around his neck like a scarf, ready to pull it up when he needed it.
Next, he turned his attention to the wooden dagger. It was smooth, highly polished, and looked more like a decorative or ceremonial item than anything that would be any good in a fight. The wood was hard and had a viciously sharp point, but the sides were not sharp like a steel blade. Max dropped it in his satchel, because if he was ever in Tibult’s shop again, he could offer it for sale. It had to be worth a few gold coins, but Max couldn’t see what other use it could possibly have.
“We should leave,” Anita said.
Max stood up, feeling lost without his staff.
“Will you help me find a staff?” Max asked. “Mine was broken, and having one makes the walk easier. There must be a staff around here somewhere.”
Anita looked at Elderon. She seemed to expect that he would insist they move on.
“A Mage needs a staff,” Elderon said.
Max hunted all over the camp, moving quickly. He looked around at the discarded items dropped by the fleeing Bandits. Then he spotted someone cowering under a wagon. He recognized her instantly. It was Jenna.
“Get out here,” Max said, speaking firmly but hopefully not too harshly.
Out she came, frightened eyes staring at Max.
“What did you have planned for me, you witch?” Max felt his fingers wrap around the grip of his sword.
Jenna cowered before at Max, a pitiful expression in her eyes that were red with tears.
“Show mercy, Max,” Anita said gently. “She is no longer any danger to us.”
“Find me a staff, and I will forgive you for trying to take my items from me,” Max said.
Jenna pointed to a wagon.
Max searched the wagon, which was filled with simple weapons. He found a staff, a highly polished length of wood. It was heavier than the staff he’d just lost in battle, but it was much smoother to the touch. There were also more bullets and a couple of pouches of superior bullets. He picked up a coiled rope that looked too thin to be useful.
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> Max gains polished staff.
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> Max gains two pouches of superior bullets.
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“These look good,” Max said to Anita as he tossed her a pouch of superior bullets. Anita studied them.
“These are a good find. They will deal more damage than basic bullets.” Anita attached the pouch to the belt of the fighting skirt. She looked over just as Max was about to discard the rope. “Hold on to that,” she said. “That is fine rope, it can be charmed to climb walls. Fine rope is a useful item for an adventurer.”
Max stood over Jenna while she looked up at him, biting her lip. Maybe he’d tie her up with the fine rope. Maybe she’d like it.
“I was told to seduce you,” Jenna said sincerely, “but you are really cute.” She wrapped a blanket over her shoulders. “I would have wanted to get to know you anyway. If you ever want to give up your adventures, I’d be happy to see you again. Just ask any traveler camp where Jenna is, and they’ll help you find me.”
Max shook his head. The gall of this woman.
Anita led the way as they left the camp, her glowing moss lighting the darkness in a pale glow. After an hour of walking over meadowlands, Elderon called a halt, and they lay down on their bedrolls and blankets. The night was cold. Elderon sat and read his massive book while Max prepared his two Magic Missiles.
Max heard movement behind him and turned to see Anita, pulling her bedroll up next to his. “Do you mind if I lay next to you?” she asked. “We need to make sure we stay warm. It’s a clear night, and it will get even colder. This way we can keep each other warm.”
How could he say no? Max tried to nonchalantly give his approval while forcing back the excitement that now coursed through his veins. He wasn’t quite ready to go to sleep but when she lay down on the thick blanket he did the same. They locked eyes and he could feel her warm breath on his face, which sent a chill down his spine. He wanted to kiss her. To close the few inches between them and feel the warmth of her mouth on his. He took his eyes off of hers and looked at her mouth. At once he saw the corner of her lips turn up in a sly smile. “Goodnight Max,” she said before turning over and pressing her back up against him.
Was she messing with him? He couldn’t help but chuckle. There was no hiding his desire but, knowing Anita, it just made her feel even more powerful. He knew he would always be a few steps behind her. But, he admitted, it was a great view.