Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
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Post by Enya on Dec 7, 2011 16:39:32 GMT -5
Enya yelped loudly when he grabbed her, she tried to pull away. When she saw the knife she froze now to afrad to move or get away " Please dont hurt me" She said now sounding scared.
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Post by Brandwyn on Dec 9, 2011 20:28:31 GMT -5
“Well now that’s more like iii - ggguuurrrrggggllle,” Carson froze and the knife in his hand fell to the dirt just as the grip on Enya’s ankle relinquished its hold. He looked at her in astonishment as Heather’s arrow sliced clean through his neck from left to right severing arteries and trachea. Carson’s eyes glazed and he fell forward right on top of Enya’s legs and lay still
“Stay down and get under cover!” Heather called to Enya from behind a tree trunk. The other bowman fired another shot at her, just to keep her pinned down. Heather was certain the other man was trying to circle around to her other side so they could catch her in the crossfire.
Since they already knew where she was at the moment, Heather said in a firm voice that didn’t give away the trembling or pain she was feeling, “Your Boss is down and captured and the others dead. You have one chance to lay down your weapons and surrender.”
“Way I see it, Ranger Girl, is you are still out numbered, injured and your little friend here is your liability. You lay down your weapon and surrender and we might just let you live a while longer. I am sure the big man would be delighted to speak with you before your demise.” The voice sounded like it belonged to a man in his early thirties and the longer he talked, the closer Heather was to finding out exactly where he was hiding.
“Let my apprentice go and I will think about it.” Heather countered, searching the woods across their camp.
“Oh, I think not,” the man chuckled. “She will fetch a good price in the slave market in Arridi – once we’ve tamed her a bit. She’s quite a little wildcat isn’t she?”
Heather didn’t answer with words. She had a fix on him now and fired her arrow into the dark. She heard the satisfying ‘thunk!’ as it sunk into flesh and the crossbowman fell out of the bushes, an arrow in his chest. The crossbow clattered to the ground and then he toppled after it. “I don’t think Enya would like it in Arridi, thank you just the same.” Heather muttered and quickly ran over to her apprentice. “There is at least one more out there, unless he ran off. Are you okay?” She crouched next to Enya, an arrow on her string, and tried to find out if the girl had been injured while keeping an eye out for the last bandit.
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Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
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Post by Enya on Dec 9, 2011 20:44:42 GMT -5
Enya Froze when she heard them speaking and growled at what they said " try and lay a hand on me you will end up like your friend here"She said trying not to sound afraid. truth was she was very scared but she did not move from where she lay. calming down a little when heather was next to her she replied " I'm Ok " She said though her voice was still shaking a little.
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Post by Brandwyn on Dec 10, 2011 23:18:45 GMT -5
Heather rolled Carson over and studied him for a moment, glancing at the woods every so often. “Did you do that to his nose?” Heather asked incredulously. “Good job!” She couldn’t tell because his face was covered in blood and his nose distorted, but she thought he looked a bit familiar as well.
Just then she heard someone crashing through the woods along the stream and moving away from them. “Stay here and start rolling up or bedrolls. Take the tent down and tack up the horses and then get on Storm. I am going to go see where that last guy is going. It looks like we are going to get an early start today.” Heather instructed Enya. “That is if you are sure you are okay? Just stay on Storm and he will take care of you if anything else happens. I will be right back.”
Heather didn’t like leaving any enemies out there on the loose in the dark so she flitted back over to the boulder in order to pick up the trail of the person crashing through the woods. She couldn’t hear anyone moving now, but what she saw made her extremely apprehensive. The man she had captured was no longer lying unconscious next to the boulder. He was gone and her thumb restraints were lying where he had been. Somehow he got loose. Now Heather wondered if that was him she’d heard and not the other guy. That meant two of them were out there still and could very well be hunting her while she was hunting them.
She followed the boss’s footprints to the stream and then down the stream just a few yards. The footprints ended in a deep gouge on the bank where they vanished. His prints weren’t the only ones in the dirt. There was one other set heading back to the water. Heather figured they had gotten in a canoe or small boat of some type and were now traveling down stream. It had to be a very small boat because the stream was hardly big enough to support a canoe. There was no sense in following any further. She returned almost immediately to Enya.
“The boss guy got away and they lit on out of here in a canoe.” Heather helped her finish up breaking camp. She figured there was still about two hours until dawn, but doubted either of them would be able to sleep now. “I think we may stay in Inns or farm houses the rest of the way home, though that is a risk with the plague going around.”
She then searched the bodies of those she had killed but didn’t find anything that might have given away their identity. She dragged them all into the center of the clearing, but the trail and left them there. “They probably should have a burial, but I am not about to go digging holes until I get this arrow point out of my shoulder.”
Heather sat down on a tree stump and poked at the wound hissing in pain. “Unless you know something about healing, I think I am going to have to wait for us to find a healer before I do anything strenuous like digging graves.” She nodded toward the dead men lying in a row like cord wood. “There is a little hamlet about 10 miles from here. I doubt they have a healer, but I would bet the matriarch has some experience with wounds.” She looked up at Enya, “Shall we go see how hospitable they are?”
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Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
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Post by Enya on Dec 10, 2011 23:30:00 GMT -5
" Yeah i did brake his nose.. cought him off guard, he looked up into the tree about the time i swung down. I was aimming for her head but i guess his nose worked better" Enya said with a small laugh. ~
" anywhere will be better then here."Enya said yawning she was tierd out from defining herself. " Lest there maybe we can get some sleep"She added with another yawn.
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Post by Brandwyn on Dec 11, 2011 19:47:59 GMT -5
Heather grinned at her, “good job, especially on evading him. I might suggest though that next time, unless you can get to your horse and get away, that you might consider climbing higher into the tree. You are small and light and someone his size won’t be able to reach you if you go to the top where the branches are smaller.” Heather suggested. “It doesn’t always work. Heh, sometimes they get the notion to set the tree on fire.” She shuddered at the memory. “It was a good thing there was another tree I could jump into…” she looked sheepishly at Enya, “um, yeah, I think you did just fine!”
" anywhere will be better then here."Enya said yawning she was tierd out from defining herself. " Lest there maybe we can get some sleep"She added with another yawn.
“Amen to that!” Heather agreed. “Let’s get out of here.” She swung up into the saddle, made sure Enya was ready and then headed off at a canter toward the tiny little village that wasn’t even big enough to be called a village. “Keep your eyes open. We don’t want them ambushing us.”
She led them through the woods and then across open fields and farmland, avoiding the road just in case the men were lying in wait for them. They could have taken a boat downstream and gotten miles ahead of them. The village was not directly on the route home, but the boss guy had seemed pretty smart and he knew she was injured so if he knew about the hamlet, he might figure she would go there. Heather wanted to get there first, so she pushed them hard despite the loss of blood and every step jarring her shoulder.
Two hours later, just as the sun was starting to come up Heather slowed to a trot again and then down to a walk. They were about to top a hill and on the other side was the cluster of farm buildings. She brought Shasta to a stop and motioned for Enya to stay put while she dismounted. “The village is over the hill. I am going to make sure those men aren’t between here and there.”
She crouched down low and as she neared the top of the hill, she slid forward on her belly so she wouldn’t be seen in the light of the rising sun. It was dawn and the farmers should be out tending to the animals.
She scanned the field between her and the village and along the road that led to it just a few hundred feet off to her left. There was no sign of their attackers. Then she studied the village for several minutes. Something about it was different from the last time she had been there a few years ago. It took her a moment to figure out that the villagers had ringed their buildings by a stump fence. They had pulled up the roots and stumps of dozens of trees and intertwined them into a crude fence that ran all the way around their homes and barns. The only gate she could see was at the road and there were two teenagers standing watch. Everything else looked normal as far as she could tell. They were feeding the animals, milking the cows and collecting the eggs. The people seemed to be acting normally and there was no sign of the men who had attacked her and Enya.
Heather glanced back and motioned for Enya to join her, also motioning for her to stay down low so she wouldn’t be seen by the villagers below.
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Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
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Post by Enya on Dec 11, 2011 20:09:19 GMT -5
"ok"Enya said watching her go. As the young girl sat there she ran her hand down her horses neck. Stormy's ears twiched slightly as he looked back at her. " Good boy"Enya said softly smiling. Seeing heather motion for her she wint over staying low as she had been told " Something wrong?"Enya asked softly
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Post by Brandwyn on Dec 13, 2011 12:37:09 GMT -5
“I’m not sure,” Heather replied softly. “I’ve lost a lot of blood and not had much sleep for several days even before the Gathering and therefore I am not operating at peak efficiency. I just wanted another set of eyes on this village to see if anything looks unusual.” Heather kept her eyes on the group of buildings below. “I am guessing they put that stump fence up when they got word of the plague. It looks pretty new. See the gouges in the dirt where they dragged the stumps into place? They can’t be more than a week old. I expect they are not going to be too welcoming of strangers. I wonder if they would dare turn away an injured King’s Ranger,” she mused.
She watched the people intently for several minutes while wishing she didn’t feel as if she were going to pass out. “Those two kids at the gate, they look bored, don’t they? I am guessing that if those men beat us here, then they would be more alert and a bit jittery. Do you see anything that might indicate those guys that got away are down there?”
Heather wanted Enya to get used to studying her surroundings and taking in all the details and this was a perfect opportunity for a lesson. Especially since Heather was far from having a sharp mind or even clear vision for that matter at the moment. Her shoulder was bleeding again after having crawled up to the hilltop and she could feel the arrow point grinding into her bone every time she moved. The pain was a constant pinching, throbbing ache deep in the joint, but this was one wound she wouldn’t be able to take care of by herself. She needed the help of that village’s healer. She hoped they had someone who fit the bill.
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Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
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Post by Enya on Dec 13, 2011 18:23:35 GMT -5
They are to relaxed. If they did get there them two would probably be more alert. That one on the left, He keeps shifting his weight from one leg to the other. Most do that when they are not use to standing for long hours" Enya said looking at Heather. " I don't think they would turn down someone hurt. I could always sweet talk them into letting us in" Enya said with a small laugh.
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Post by Brandwyn on Dec 15, 2011 19:07:35 GMT -5
Heather smiled approvingly at her apprentice, “Good observations and that’s what I thought too. “ She looked thoughtfully at the village after Enya suggested sweet talking them.
“You know that might not be a bad idea. We can circle around the hill and come onto the road out of sight of those kids and I will act like I am mortally wounded and barely conscious. You take the lead and get us inside the village. If they don’t go for sweet talk, try getting hysterical. Boys can’t stand it when girls cry.” She grinned at Enya. “Sometimes it pays to use your feminine wiles to get what you want.”
“Anyway, if the bandits are in there, they will think I am far worse off than I really am and if they try to do anything we will have a nasty little surprise for them.” She grinned and patted her bow. “What do think? Want to try it?”
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Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
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Post by Enya on Dec 15, 2011 19:20:15 GMT -5
Enya smiled " I like that. I could also say you like my sister or something, Make it a bit more balevable?"She asked looking at Heather. " Beleave me i have to sweet talk my way in to a inn one time in the middle of a very bad thunderstorm" Enya said shivering "I don't like thunderstorms... ironic i named my horse storm" She said laughing a little
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Post by Brandwyn on Dec 15, 2011 20:46:09 GMT -5
Enya smiled " I like that. I could also say you like my sister or something, Make it a bit more believable?" She asked looking at Heather.
“Well…” said Heather, “since we are wearing ranger cloaks, it would probably be better to stick to the truth. We will be dealing with these people again most likely and besides, they are obligated to offer assistance to any ranger in need.” Heather explained, “should they turn away a King’s Ranger, and that ranger report it to the Commandant, the village could get sanctioned. That means they would not be able to sell any of their wares at market or hold marriages or have their disputes heard or do any other legal transactions.” Then Heather grinned again, “you could mention that fact if they really get obstinate. Besides, I won’t actually be unconscious so I will step in if needs be.”
"Believe me i have to sweet talk my way in to a inn one time in the middle of a very bad thunderstorm" Enya said shivering "I don't like thunderstorms... ironic i named my horse storm" She said laughing a little.
“Yeah, it is kind of.” Heather chuckled. “Okay, let’s get going. If we are lucky we can get my wound fixed up and get some solid sleep without having to worry about being attacked.”
She wiggled backwards back down the hill until it was safe to crouch and then walk back to the horses. “Why don’t you take the lead and I am going to slump in the saddle. I will have my bow ready though, just in case we need it. Probably a good idea if you keep yours out and ready as well.” Heather swung up into the saddle and pulled three arrows out of her quiver and held them in her left hand along with her bow, ready to knock one and fire should the need arise. Then she slumped forward over the saddle as if she were in a stupor and about to fall off her horse. The blood that had soaked through her tunic sleeve and was dripping off the tip of her fingers enhanced the effect. Her recent activity had set it to bleeding again.
“Ready when you are.” Heather quipped softly, “Lead on, apprentice!”
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Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
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Post by Enya on Dec 15, 2011 22:01:58 GMT -5
" Im ready" Enya said Before edging storm on. ~ Ok, You got to ack the part now.~ she thought to herself as she headed for the city gates. ~ please let this work. I hate seeing her hurt, i hate seeing anyone hurt for that matter~ Shaking her head to cleer her mind some she focused on her task.
~~~~~
As she got up to the gates the two boys stoped her " What is you business here" the tallest of the two asked... " Please, We mean no harm, Me and my mentor where traveling when we got ambushed by bandits. She was badly hurt, Please let us in" Enya said " Why should we? How do we know the bandits are not following you" The shorter one asked
" Please! You have to beleave me! If you don't let us in she might die. I can't be left alone again. Shes the only friend i have. Please, Just trust me" Enya pleaded her voice sounded as if she was crying, And she pretty much had as a few tears fell from her eyes.
" oh now dont go and do that. alright you may pass" The tall boy said. "Thank you" Enya said smiling a little/
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Post by Brandwyn on Dec 22, 2011 11:38:43 GMT -5
Heather covertly studied the two boys while Enya pleaded with them and they didn’t seem to be acting like anyone else had come to the village. The shorter one was studying she and Enya and since he was closer to Heather, she lifted her head a little, exposing more of the bloodied shoulder and croaked out a question to him, “Has the … sickness reached… here yet?”
The boy looked at her warily as if making up his mind and Heather fixed him with a stern glare as if to remind him that she was a ranger and lying to her would not be a smart course of action.
Finally he shook his head and said, “You’re the first we’ve let in since we heard about it.” Then he leaned closer and lowered his voice, “We heard a small farm about eight miles away was hit with it just about three weeks ago and seems only a little girl survived.” He eyed her and Enya again and the wary look came back into his eyes, “You ain’t sick are ya?”
Heather shook her head and groaned slightly, “No, I have … an arrow point… in my shoulder… need your healer.” Heather panted, reeling in the saddle. “We haven’t… seen anyone sick… between here and… Gorlon,” she randomly picked a castle from the north even though it wasn’t where they had actually ridden from, “but we’ve… kept to the… forest trails… not the roads.” She groaned again, playing up her distress and for a moment seemed to lose consciousness.
Right then Enya poured on the tears with the larger boy and he glanced at his partner who nodded and then said, "oh now don’t go and do that. Alright you may pass." Heather hid her smile and nudged Shasta forward with a squeeze of her knees.
“Go to the fourth house on the left,” the smaller youth instructed, “ask for Mama Gertrude. She’ll fix you right up.” He stared after her and Heather nodded her thanks with a backward glance, still hunched over the saddle horn. Her eyes then roved around to each side and she checked the roof tops and doors and windows before they reached each building.
The few farmers that were out stopped and watched them, but only two broke off what they were doing and followed them up the street. Heather noted that they were both carrying farm utensils that could be used as weapons in a pinch and their faces were wary and suspicious. She also noticed an elderly gentleman put down his bucket of chicken feed and stride over to the gate to speak with the boys.
As they rode up the street Heather said softly to Enya, “Great job. You ask for Mama Gertrude and I will keep playing the part, but I don’t think those men came here.” She glanced behind her again to the two men following at a bit of a distance. “They just seem uptight about the plague.”
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Enya
Apprentice Scribe
Posts: 109
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Post by Enya on Dec 22, 2011 19:50:05 GMT -5
" Yeah, i little to uptight" Enya said as they got to the house she jumped down off stormy and walked over to the door and knocked. When a young man open the door Enya asked for Mama Gertude.
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