The man in black offered a pair of empty hands to the group of soldiers as he approached, the rhythmic squick of his boots on the water-logged soil accompanying each step. He visibly stumbled, slowing his stride to regain his balance on the slick grass. Aside from the two archers to his far left and right, the five other soldiers had fanned out beside their apparent leader - the darked-haired man wielding the only sword in the bunch. None had drawn weapons yet, but Theis knew that could change in an instant.
A stiff wind swept across the clearing, bending the wild grasses and white hemlock toward the ground in undulating waves. The soldiers, drenched as they were, cringed as the gust further sapped the heat from their bodies.
Good, he thought. The cold will make you clumsy, slow.
As he neared the goat-headed effigy, Theis spread his hands ever wider in a show of peace. Despite their numbers, he had no misgivings over fighting them all by himself. He'd faced larger groups alone before and escaped relatively unscathed. Of the eight, the two archers posed the greatest threat, especially perched above the rest of their companions as they were. There would be no sneaking up on them either, not like he'd done with the men hiding in the trees outside of Ishen's cabin the day before.
The real question, though, was whether or not these two archers possessed any training or skill, or if they were just window dressing.
He trained his eyes to the man on the right. A low grip on the bow, quiver on his right hip, no wrist guard on his left forearm, no arrow in sight.
Theis snorted. Amateur. Likely won't even shoot once I'm amongst them, for fear of hitting his companions.
The woman standing in the rubble of the overgrown hovel however, reminded him of a girl he'd grown up with. A leather wrist guard, its once waxy sheen worn to the consistency of nubuck by years of being scraped by the returning bow string, protected her left forearm. Her quiver was slung over her right shoulder, allowing for the quick retrieval of ammunition. She already had an arrow nocked and ready to go, her index finger hooking the shaft with the hand holding the bow to keep it in place while her drawing arm relaxed.
The man in black resisted the urge to look back at the boy and his cat. Things were different now. He couldn't go into a fight with only himself on his mind. Once his blade tasted sunlight, who knew what the soldiers would do? In the time it took him to reach and neutralize the first archer, any number of soldiers could have crossed the clearing behind him. And while Theis had faith in the cat's ability to take care of himself, the boy was another story.
Theis knew he would need every advantage he could muster to keep that one alive.
Feigning an audible groan, the man in black stepped up on the circular stone dais, careful not to disturb the grotesque assortment of animal parts and rotting plant matter with a boot. As he crossed the dais to place a hand on one of the effigy's curved horns, the vibrant glow of his eyes subtly strengthened, painting his view of the world in a faint layer of translucent turquoise. An electric tingle spread through his body, suffusing his muscles with the need to act, to move, to perform.
To fight.
Theis stilled his breathing and tried to relax. There would be plenty of time for action in the minutes to come.
“Well met,” said the dark-haired soldier with a nod, unfolding his arms to rest a hand on the scabbard behind the hilt of his saber. Theis noticed his thumb pop the blade ever so slightly free, ensuring a smooth draw should such a thing be necessary. “I am Grobin. an officer of the Lancowl constabulary, and these woods are a province under the authority of the baron.”
Theis nodded. “Bit far from home, aren't we?”
He half-shrugged, a complex expression crossing his face. “The whims of nobility. Work is work, I suppose. Who am I to question?”
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The man in black appraised each of the six soldiers spread out before him in turn. None had moved to surround, and had instead formed a line ten to fifteen feet in front of the stone dais. A few eyed the effigy warily, while the rest seemed equally struck by the mysterious black-clad stranger addressing their leader.
Grobin simply appraised him coolly, his hardened gaze never deviating from Theis' face. The man in black felt his soul flickering in the darkness of his subconscious, reaching out to paint the dark-haired soldier in a faint white aura that made him stand out from the scene like a torch on a moonless night.
Pay attention, it told him. His eyes narrowed slightly. He thought he saw something in the way the man watched him. A hint of recognition or concealed intent, maybe. He couldn't yet tell.
“Your men seem tense. Rough morning?”
Grobin sucked his teeth and frowned. “Of a sort. It seems none of us know either where we are or how we came to be here. Fact of the matter is, we each set out in separate teams of three this morning, yet somehow...all arrived here together at precisely the same moment.
“And short a man.” He shot a dour glance at a young, buck-toothed man to his right. The soldier scratched an arm nervously and cast his eyes to the trees.
“Forest is like that. Easy to get lost out here if one isn't careful.”
Grobin spit off to the side. “Lost is one thing. Popping out of the woods in a clearing miles from where we started...and right in the middle of a thunderstorm? That's of a different sort.”
“Like I said, easy to get lost in the Traagen." He idly rubbed the stone horn beneath his glove. "Might be that woods like it that way.”
“What's that supposed to mean?”
“I mean, the Traagen is not a friend to the careless, the disrespectful, or the stupid. The people of Elbin have lived in relative harmony with the woods for coming on a hundred years now. Done well to keep the Traagen in its original state, too, taking only what they need and replacing it when they can. I imagine the god of nature makes for a fairly pleasant bedfellow when one shows the proper deference in his domain.”
His tone darkened. “As opposed to those who set fire to his home.”
The small collection of soldiers murmured nervously at that, exchanging dubious glances as each fell back half-a-step or more. A few put weapon to hand, as though a chunk of hardened wood or sharpened metal could somehow fend off the vengeful whims of the supernatural.
Grobin didn't retreat.
“I don't know much about all that. Comelbough has had little use for either gods or magic since before I became a man. Baron Lancowl saw to that. After his father was murdered, the young baron did everything in his power to cut both from the flesh of the barony, no matter who's blood was spilled in the process.
“It's an unfortunate thing, too. Our crops could benefit from the occasional prayer to this nature god of yours, but, as it sits, open worship and diefic symbolism have been outlawed within the bounds of the barony, no matter how far we find ourselves from the capital.”
He pointed not at Theis, but at the effigy beside him. “I'm obligated by oath to set this one to rubble once I've got you in order.”
His soul flared in the darkness of his mind. There's my opening.
Theis removed his hand from the effigy and returned it beneath his cloak. “Got me in order?”
“Mmm-hmm. It occurs to me...” he began, raising an eyebrow and taking a deep breath before continuing. “...that you've yet to introduce yourself, stranger.”
“Didn't realized you'd asked.”
Grobin flexed his fingers on the grip of his sword. “I had the strangest idea when I left Comelbough and set out for these woods. Working for the Baron pays the bills, yes, but...what couldn't my family and I do with three thousand gold shils? Why, we'd practically be nobility in our own right, with money like that filling our pouches. I could buy a ship, sail the world. Show my son the mythical Chapel in Repose, said to be the resting place of Empyria. Take my wife for a walk along the Crystalline Shores to hunt for quartz crab.
“We could live, free to do as we please. No more barons. No more commanders. No more rainy, freezing treks into the mountains. No more burning forests. Just comfort and freedom.
“All I'd have to do is cross paths with an aging swordsman with glowing eyes said to have disappeared into the Traagen Woods over a decade ago. I knew that chance was infinitesimal, but it seems your forest gods favor me today.”
The grate of metal on wood announced the arrival of his saber.
“You're a wanted man, stranger.” A triumphant grin split his face. “And that bounty is mine.”