Visar yawned, and checked the map again, even though by now he had it all but memorized.  He and Dante were only a couple of days' ride away from the cottage, he reckoned.  Hopefully the Brown Sister would be there when they arrived.  Then all they had to do was deliver the cages of messenger birds and make their way back.

 

Visar and Dante had been riding slowly west from Tar Valon for over a week now, heading towards the Luan River in the Black Hills.  Not far from the River, a Sister of the Brown Ajah kept a cottage, where she conducted her ecological observations from.  Or at least that's what the description in their orders had said.  What on earth does "ecological" mean?  Visar wondered.  He had asked Dante how many times now?  He didn't seem to know either.  Some high intellectual thing no doubt, if an Aes Sedai had to be all the way out here in the middle of nowhere to do it.

 

Still, it had been a pleasant journey other than the sheer boredom of riding across mostly flat plains.  The ingenious contraption which held the cages securely to the horses made it so that the birds would not be too jostled around; yet even so Visar and Dante had been sure to ride slowly just in case.  The Dragonmount was barely visible on clear days to the southeast, but even today Visar could barely see it.

 

They had perhaps an hour before the night fell, the sky ahead starting to glow orange and red.  Ahead, Visar could make out some of the first heights which made up the Black Hills.  They would have to be careful riding here, but at least it was more interesting than the otherwise drab plains.  He saw a copse of trees on one of them which might do to camp for the night.  Then, tomorrow they just had to find the river, travel up and find the cottage.  Visar turned to Dante.

 

"Hey Dante, you think that woods over there would be a good place to stop?" he pointed to the one on the hill which he meant.  Visar was then distracted by the cooing from within the covered cages.  "How are your birds doing?  Maybe we should feed them again; mine are starting to complain."

Days drag by when you are on the road. It got to a point where this slow pace began to wear on his patience. When Visar mentioned another stop he growled slightly. The slow pace  they realized a little too late would put them on half rations. They had to substitute with rabbits or the occasional wild turkey but even still, Dante was hungry and wanted this trip to be over with... the birds were being a bother though.

 

"Yes we can stop for awhile."

 

It had been a battle not to be short with Visar. Wasnt like it was his fault that this was taking forever.

 

When they got to the small copse of trees Dante quickly scouted the area. Foot prints a week old and a few scraps of discarded clothes told him that they were not the only one who used this for camping. There was even a fire pit already dug out. When he found the clothes and saw that some where female he hoped this was just a place where merchants would camp when trying to shave a few days off their trip to... somewhere. In the center of the trees was a small pool of water. The pool itself was dug deep and held river stones on the bottom. There was a slight current telling Dante this was just a area where an underground river flowed and happened to come up. Tossing the core of an apple aside he covered it in dirt both to hide signs they were here and in hopes maybe something would grow from it. Though covering tracks were hardly an issue on this mission. (Not like  someone is after the birds.)

 

Finding Visar with wood by the fire pit and a wild turkey Dante informed him of his findings. "We arent the only ones who use this as a camp.. its pretty well traveled for being in the middle of nowhere land."

When they arrived at the copse, Dante went to scout the area, and Visar busied himself with making camp.  He made sure the horses had plenty of undergrowth to graze on when he tethered them to small trees.  He set up the tent with no difficulties, and placed the bird cages near the entrance, making sure all of them were fed and watered.  He was just readying a fire, with which to cook the wild turkey they had caught the day before, when Dante returned.

 

"We arent the only ones who use this as a camp.. its pretty well traveled for being in the middle of nowhere land."

 

Visar frowned slightly, not sure whether he liked this information.  On the one hand, it would be pleasant to be able to talk to other travelers and hear their stories.  Even Dante could be difficult to travel with sometimes, especially if there was no one that Visar considered to be more normal.

 

"Hmm...we should keep watch tonight then.  Who started first shift last?  Was it you or me?"

"Hmm...we should keep watch tonight then.  Who started first shift last?  Was it you or me?"

 

Dante shook his head. "I am not tired yet. Get some sleep if you need it." With a nod they set out cooking their meal of three stringy rabbits, burying the innards of the animals with the core he had tossed earlier. The water at least was cold and fresh so Dante took the opportunity to refresh all the water skins.

 

Though it had thus far been a quite night Dante started his patrols, changing up directions and lengths of patrols as he was suppose to. It was on one of his patrols that he found one of the horses were free. He approached the animal which looked like his own but even in this darkness he recognized that the saddle was not his. Fear came over him. Visar was alone.

 

"Visar!" He shouted as he ran for the camp just in time to see a man moving towards Visar, blade in hand. Dante took the mans head clean off sending the man's body into the campfire and a spray of fluids, sparks and burning wood on to Visar who woke immediately, and through out the camp. The sparks and wood started a few brush fires which Dante was about to put out until he realized the tree above them that the horses were tethered to also had caught. Then came the sounds of cavalry. Lots of cavalry. It was going to be a rough fight if this fire spread through the fields of dead grass and brush they had to come through to get here and cut through bandits (Or rather he assumed they were bandits) as well.

 

OOC thought I would get it started, bandits, surrounded by fire, should be fun

Dante generously offered to take the first watch.  Visar accepted, and went to work skinning the remaining catch.  After that, he made sure the fire would not spread, and laid down to get some shut eye.  Some time had passed, and Visar shifted, hearing a distant shout.  It almost sounded like it was his name, but in his drowsy state he was not sure. 

 

Then, he heard something closer, and suddenly, hot sparks and blood splashed on his face.  Visar got up with a yelp and assessed the situation.  A man, with his head cut off.  Dante, a stern but frightened look on his face.  Visar drew his dagger, and moved over to Dante.  He heard horse hooves.

 

"How many?" he asked, trying to peer through the growing smoke.  With alarm, Visar realized that the fire was spreading through the undergrowth.  However many men there were, he knew he couldn't stay here.  They would have to try to get out of the smoke or be suffocated.

 

"To the horses! Quick!  Then we need to get out of here before the fire spreads!"  he shouted, trying to make some sort of decision on the flash.  Dante and he reached their horses.  Visar managed to unlimber his lance from its loop in the saddle before the first of the raiders came riding into view.  He didn't think, but shifted into a ready stance next to Dante, his lance point threatening.

 

More riders came into view.  Half a dozen at least...too many to take on at once, and they're on horses.  What do we do?  Do we run and hide or try to fight them?  Fear gripped Visar by the neck, and he choked on the smoke, coughing. It was getting hard to see anything now.  What do we do?!

 

The riders seemed as reluctant to go into the copse as Dante was to go through them to get out. Making a quick glance he figured out what to do. "Grab the saddles bags and the birds, untie the horses, we leave the rest and leave out the back of the copse." Visar nodded and began to untie the horses, good since Dante couldnt untie one of Visar's knots. Dante grabbed the birds and through the saddle bags over each horse. The weight of them would keep them on while they rode. He soaked a couple of his sashes with water and tossed one to Visar and wrapped the second around his nose and mouth. Visar understood and did the same. With birds and reins in his right hand and an open left hand he began to lead Visar through the copse which seemed to have gone up quickly.

 

The sounds of men shouting seemed to be all around them. Their horses were ready to run, and as soon as they were out run they would have to to escape the brush fire that had probably started from this. It was noisy and he was so focused that he was caught off guard as one of the riders burst through the burning brush on his left. Dante had not thought someone would be stupid enough to bring a horse in this and so through a punch aimed at what should have been a human head, instead he caught a horse head, luckily it was the same effect as the horse fell over toppling its rider... he was going to get crap from Visar about that if they made it through this. The rider was in a panic and had probably been sneaking up from where they were trying to escape when he was surrounded by the fire. A quick flick of the wrist from Visar and the rider crumpled to the ground.

 

The entrance was in view but a battle awaited them there. "They were flanking us. We dont have a choice but to hope that there are less of them on this side. Are you ready?" He didnt wait for Visar to answer as he jumped bareback on his horse. Both men were trained to guide with their legs. He switched the birds to his left hand and took his scimitar in his right. As soon as Visar was beside him, they would charge.

Thankfully, the riders hesitated, giving Dante and Visar time to collect themselves. 

"Grab the saddles bags and the birds, untie the horses, we leave the rest and leave out the back of the copse."  Dante shouted.

 

Though panic stricken, Visar did his best to do what Dante said, with nothing else on his mind but to try to get out of this and survive.  He didn't bother wasting time untying the horses, cutting the tethers close to the horse with his dagger blade.  He sheathed the dagger, knowing it was practically useless against an armed rider with greater reach.  He grabbed a bird cage, threw his saddle bags on the horse, and grabbed the reins with his right hand, trying to keep a hold of his lance at the same time.

 

The smoke thickened, and a rider approached, braving the fires to attack them.  Visar instinctively dropped the bird cage on the ground and let go of his horse's reins.  He held his lance with both hands, and stabbed into the flank of the horse at the same time Dante punched.  The horse and its unfortunate rider toppled to the ground.  The screams were terrible.  Visar yanked his lance out and turned back around, frantically trying to find its horse.

 

Thankfully, the creature hadn't bolted yet.  Visar strode up and mounted as best he could.

 

"They were flanking us. We don't have a choice but to hope that there are less of them on this side. Are you ready?"

 

Visar nodded, holding his lance with both hands once he was settled on the horse. He suddenly remembered he had abandoned one of the bird cages.  He thought for a moment that he might bring that up, then shook the thought from his mind.

 

Burn the cages!  They'd just get in the way.  Our lives are more important!  he thought.

 

"Let's go!" he shouted as he rode beside Dante.

 

They cleared the smoke, and Visar had two moments to breath the fresh night air.  Then four of the bandits rode in to intercept.  Visar kicked his legs into his horse, urging it to go faster, straight towards the other rider wielding an axe.  He leveled his lance, and tried to aim at the rider.  When they passed, Visar's aim was too low, and his lance point pierced the neck of the enemy's horse.

 

Man and horse went down in a screaming tumble.  With them went Visar's lance, stuck too deep to pull out in time.  Temporarily without a weapon, Visar wheeled to the left, trying to avoid the spear of another horseman bearing down on them.  He managed to avoid the first strike, but the rider followed.

 

Visar had just managed to find his sword, sheathed at the saddle, when the rider bore down on him.  Pulling the sword from its sheath, Visar turned, but it was too late.  The butt of the bandit's spear smacked him in the ribs, and the next thing Visar knew he was slammed hard into the ground.

 

Get up! a voice seemingly inside Visar's head told him.  He stood with a grunt, though he felt like he could barely breath.  My sword...where?

  There it was, on the ground beside him.  Visar picked it up.

 

The bandit had dismounted for some reason, and was closing in fast.  Visar had only half a moment to ready his guard.  The opponent thrust the spear towards Visar's chest.  Visar deflected the blow slightly, and grabbed tightly onto the shaft as the point went past him.  They struggled briefly, the man yanking the spear free, slicing at Visar's off hand, and then Visar remembered his weapon and brought his sword crashing down in a one handed cut.

 

The man's skull was split from the blow, and he fell.  With some difficulty, Visar yanked the blade from the corpes's skull.

 

Breathing heavily, Visar cast his eyes around his surroundings frantically.  Where was Dante?  They had been separated in the carnage.

 

Another rider came up, and Visar thought he could see a glint of steel, but he couldn't see who it was.  He raised his sword, preparing for the worst.

(OOC lol horse wouldnt charge through them unless it was trained to. It would stop and be useless to the rider if not a hindrance. I should have mentioned it went stationary but figured that would be assumed. Bad writing on my part. As for knocking out the horse, supposedly George Foreman knocked out a cow which have thicker skulls than a horse if Im not mistaken. So I threw it in because I thought it would be funny.)

 

Dante rushed out and saw both of the riders coming towards him spears. He knew he could not deflect either so allowed them to get close enough to not want to give up the chase before running back into the burning copse with the rider's spears just inches from his horses flank. His own horse was only half trained but their was not trained at all. He heard a large crash and a shower of sparks sprayed his back. A horse and rider were screaming but one was still following. Weaving around trees made the mans spear all but useless and so he was not prepared when Dante swung around one of them to stab him through the side. The man's horse threw its rider and began to run as fast as it could to get out. The man was only wounded so Dante dismounted to finish him off mercifully. Looking to his side he saw Visar's cage of birds and picked it up.

 

With a bird cage in each hand he charged back out of the copse and raised one high in the air for Visar to see with a triumphant look on his face. Sure going back in was a stupid move and his clothes and hair were singed but he got the birds right? As he rode towards Visar with the metal handle glinting in the sun and flames Visar looked a little more than worried so Dante slowed down. "Calm down man... unless you think these birds are a threat lower your weapon."

(ooc: oh well, let's get down to the grit of the situation then shall we?  We'll probably ride that one horse to death, but for now let's keep it lol)

 

"Calm down man... unless you think these birds are a threat lower your weapon."

 

Visar lowered his sword slightly when he recognized Dante.  He scowled at the bird cages.  Why on earth had Dante tried to retrieve the one he had abandoned?  That sort of foolish heroics could have gotten him killed!

 

"Fine, let's go this way.  To the river." Visar snapped and pointed northwest. Or at least where he thought northwest was. The wind had been blowing steadily from that direction to the southeast earlier that day.  If they could run through the smoke to where the wind wouldn't spread it, they stood less of a chance of suffocating from it, even if they ran the risk of being caught out in the open between hills or woods.  It was as good a place to run as any, and Visar knew the river lay that way too, with the possibility of safety as well as better food and water to live off of.

 

Visar shifted the grip on his sword to his undamaged right hand, and began running in place beside Dante, trying his best to keep up with the horse's pace.  He didn't have his sheath anymore, and didn't think he had time to look for it so he simply held the blade in the section near the hilt, as if it was in its scabbard.  The blade wasn't sharp enough there to cut him, thankfully.  He attempted to convince Dante of some sense as he ran, speaking in short phrases.

 

"These birds are...threat.  To our lives. They'd slow us down...give us away. We should set 'em loose, as soon as we...find a good place to hide.  Let them fly back to the Tower...spread the news.  We can always...get more birds...later."

 

They kept going, Visar breathing heavily within minutes.  Finally, he held up a hand and slowed down to a walk.

 

"Have...to stop...for moment.  My ribs!" he wheezed, feeling the pain and aches of everything as the adrenaline of the fight wore off. His left hand burned as if several wasps had stung it repeatedly, his neck and back were sore, and he felt like his ribs were broken.  Dazzling lights blurred in his vision, and he stumbled to the ground, hearing but not understanding a voice as he went unconscious.

As Visar fell Dante instinctively dropped both cages and dismounted. He cursed as the wood broke on both cages and they birds flew off towards the tower. With a mumbled curse he picked up Visar and his sword and through Visar over the horse. He could hear the other bandits though in all the noise and smoke he couldnt tell where they were. He just wanted to escape this. Just wanted them both to get out alive. He mounted and set out at a run the horse was happy to do. The fields of dead grass had caught quick and all around seemed to be fire. So much fire that Dante did not see a break in the fire ahead, the horse unfortunately did and came to a dead stop sending Dante and an unconscious Visar both into a well worn ditch full of lightly flowing water.

 

Dante's vision went black for a moment but he would not allow himself to pass out. He pulled the horse into the ditch by the cut reins and and gave it the command to lay down which fortunately it knew. He took care of both their wounds and rested. Neither had had much a chance to sleep and Dante had none at all since the previous night. Somewhere in the ride he had lost his saddle bags but luckily there was fish in the river he caught with a little effort. The heat from the fire on both sides made it so he had to get around on all fours to avoid inhaling smoke and the water helped with the heat but they all had burns. The fish however were easily cooked on a few river rocks and there was plenty of fire around after all... Now it was a matter of waiting for Visar to wake up. No doubt the bandits were deciding if revenge was worth risking the fire.

 

"What a night this has turned out to be..."

Fire and smoke haunted his mind, and as Visar finally woke, he knew he had not escaped that terror entirely yet.  The odor of charred vegetation hung all around, though the thickest smoke had thankfully drifted the other way.

 

He opened his eyes, and lazily glanced around.  He was lying in a ditch with water still flowing.  Odd, there had not been much rain at all the last week.  Maybe it was a stream, or even the river they had been looking for? It didn't look like much of a river, but it was water, and it smelled clean, too.  Visar turned his head slightly, and heard Dante speak.

 

"What a night this has turned out to be..."

 

Visar attempted to quip a response, but found he had virtually no voice.  His effort came out in a muffled croak.  He coughed then, feeling the pain again in his ribs, until finally he could say something.

 

"Yeah, what a flaming bloody night." Visar rasped.  "Blood and Ashes." he swore bitterly, even though he knew such a phrase could not do their position justice.  They had lost the birds, it seemed, and their remaining horse looked exhausted.  They might kill it if they rode it ragged between the two of them.  Visar forced himself not to panic. 

 

At least they were in a place with water, and they could hide in the ditch for now.  He forced himself to do something to occupy his mind.  Taking his dagger, Visar cut strips of cloth from his sleeve, and after cleaning his hands, wrapped them around the hand where he was cut.  It was not a serious wound, but he would have to make sure it didn't get infected.  His ribs...he was unsure whether he had broken one, but he didn't know how to set a rib bone to right.  Perhaps the best thing was to just tough out the pain for now and try to avoid a situation where he would have to breathe more heavily.  At least he was feeling a little better.  Perhaps it wasn't as bad as he thought it was.  He looked over at Dante, who looked absolutely worn out.

 

It was only then he noticed that there was some fish.  Visar grinned, and they shared a few bites quietly, packing the rest away for later.  Ever resourceful Dante, always the first to get us taken care of.  If it was anyone else, Visar had no doubt they would be dead by now, still lost in the smoke.

 

"You get hurt any back there?" Visar asked quietly.  "You should wash and wrap up if you are."

 

No doubt Dante had already done so, but Visar could not help but make sure Dante was taking care of himself too.

 

Visar peered over the edge of the ditch to the hills and plains beyond.  He saw nothing but a distant wall of smoke.  It was unlikely that the bandits would try to pursue until the smoke died down a little.  That bought them precious time, Visar thought.  Time to rest and figure out what to do next.

 

After some time had passed, Visar had an idea. In between yawns and coughs, he explained to Dante.  "This water...you think this is a stream, or the river itself?  I think we were southeast of where we needed to be before...so I'd suggest going upstream for now if it means going in a northerly direction.  If it's the river, we'll find the Aes Sedai's cottage.  We at least owe it to the Brown Sister to tell her what happened before going back. If it's just a stream...well we'll find it eventually I'm sure.  We should rest first, though.  We'll go faster if we're not worn out like this, and I doubt those men would find us in the dark while the wildfire's still burning. I'll take first watch, then I'll wake you up in a few hours.  Sound like a plan?"

Dante was not going to argue with sleep. It would be a little difficult with water all around him. He leaned back against the side of the ditch and closed his eyes as he spoke. He had been eating fish to stay awake and after this trip he was not sure he would ever want to see one again.

 

"I just have a few scratches and burns." More than a few but the cold water felt great on those... until he would have to get out of it. "If its the river then yes we would go against the current... but if its just another part of that underground river that happened to come up then it will be emptying into the main river which means we would need to go with the current."

 

There was water in his boots which bothered him. He had debated on taking them off since the water when it dried would make them crack and be hard on his feet. However if he needed to leave in a hurry again he wouldnt have time to put them on. He also thought about the discarded clothing back at the copse. Some of it was womens clothing and he should have known they shouldnt camp there by the fact that it was cut by a blade up the front of it... and here he thought it may be due to itchweed. These bandits didnt deserve to live... but at the same time he had caused one of them to burn up in a fire. Was he any better?

 

He shivered though it was not from the cold on his burns. He had killed and the first man he killed had died in a horrible way. (So did those women who once wore those clothes though.) He slept. Thought it was a restless sleep with dreams of black intangible claws pulling him towards Shayol Gul while burned bodies of his first kills watched and laughed through blistered lungs.

Visar clutched his chest as he sat watch, trying to ignore the dull ache in his ribs.  He peered over the ditch occasionally, and tuned his ears to pick up anything that was not Dante or the river.

 

An hour passed by.  Visar made sure the horse was doing alright.  It was tired, and barely registered Visar's presence, but it should be able to wake soon if necessary.  Visar only hoped the horse was smart enough to keep quiet, or it would give them away.

 

Two hours passed by.  Visar yawned, pressing at his ribs to feel pain, to feel something to stay awake.  Dante slept, but fitfully.  Visar considered waking him, but not until he was sure he couldn't stay awake.

 

It had been something like three hours when Visar flinched from an unfamiliar sound.  Peering over the ditch's edge, he could see nothing in the darkness, but after a few minutes he heard it again, louder this time.

 

Visar went quietly over to Dante and shook him awake, immediately motioning for silence.

 

"Shh!" he whispered, "I hear hounds barking.  Might be the bandits.  They're still a ways away, but they would track us best by scent at this time.  Hopefully there aren't more than two dogs...Burn my soul let them be small!"

 

Visar had been bitten by dogs before in Tear, but the Light save them if there were more than two.  Groups of dogs were extremely dangerous to fight.

 

Awake and aware from the sudden rush of fear, Visar went about packing up everything.  Once they were done and had the horse awake and ready (and thankfully fairly quiet), Visar got up close and asked in a hushed tone,  "Do you think we should keep the horse and ride alternate like we've been doing?  It's your turn to ride in that case.  It will be slow going in the dark, since we'll have to avoid mudpits by the river, and the hills and trees will get thicker the farther north we go.  I'm not sure abandoning the horse will help, though.  Even I don't want to give the horse up to be stolen or worse, end up as dog meat."

Dante was still groggy and it took effort to stretch enough to move again after being wet and in the cold dark of night. His burns were paining him but looking at Visar it seemed the man was in much worse shape. "If there are dogs we need to move now and I will be able to move faster than you can with that." He said pointing to Visar's rib. He was giving a valid case and reluctantly Visar must have realized he didnt have a choice.

 

Pulling the horse by the cut reins he began to move them away from the barking. There was still smoke and that may have been all that was saving them. They went upriver as Visar had planned and it seemed this was indeed the river as the ground around them became a little unsteady. The hills certainly were black... at night at least. The night was holding the bandits back as well however. Once day came they would be at a disadvantage with one horse and both of them injured.

 

As dawn approached Dante spotted another copse. "There... we need to get rid of these dogs Visar... we need to handle them and then disappear before the bandits catch up with the dogs."

"There... we need to get rid of these dogs Visar... we need to handle them and then disappear before the bandits catch up with the dogs."

 

Breathing heavily from his injury even on horseback, Visar stared glumly at the copse.  They had to deal with the dogs, it was clear that at the pace they were going they couldn't outrun the bandits.  The copse could be their last stand.  Trying to avoid the clenching fear of death that was starting to settle around him, Visar focused on the first problem, getting rid of the dogs.

 

"I wish I knew what kind they were from their sound..." he muttered, not knowing whether they were dealing with smaller bloodhounds that merely tracked, or large hunting dogs which could maul people up with ease.  Either way, the barking was coming closer.  They might be on them in only a couple hours.

 

They reached the hill, and Visar had the inkling of a plan in his head.

 

"The only way I can see this working is if we give the dogs some sort of bait."

 

They looked around, and Visar saw a tree with thick branches close to the ground.  It might do for climbing.  If one of them climbed the tree, and the other hid somewhere nearby, they might manage to get the dogs in one place around the tree, and then scare or fight them off before their masters could reach the copse.

 

Visar related the idea to Dante, wondering which one of them would be bait, and which one of them would have to climb the tree. And there was the question of the horse...

 

Once things were settled, Visar and Dante occupied the waiting time keeping themselves busy.  Cutting down a few saplings, they skinned the bark and sharpened the points, making some makeshift javelins that might work at close range.  They cast about the ground for throwing stones, which were also in plentiful supply.

 

The barking was getting closer.  Five...no six of them!  Visar exhaled sharply, but did not tell Dante how many he thought there were.

 

"They'll be here soon." he said simply.  "We should get ready."

Dante had Visar stand as the bait and close to the tree. Not as likely he would be able to stand toe to toe with his ribs messed up as they were. Dante took position in a nearby bush and loosened a couple throwing knives for his left while he had his scimitar in his right. They didnt have to wait long.

 

The dogs came barking their fool heads off and Dante saw six. Six! He wasnt sure this would go well. As he rushed out and tossed his daggers only one hit and not enough to stop the dog. All six turned and headed towards him and he was almost sure this would be end. He braced and made a slow move towards the tree to try and give Visar a shorter range to deal with. He slashed and missed at the first dog to get to him and but landed a solid punch on the chest of the second that jumped towards him. The dog yelped but didnt stop. The same dog yelped as a large stone struck it and Dante turned to deal with the third whom he managed a slice across its side which only seemed to make it mad. It was looking grim. He wasnt moving fast enough to deal with three much less the other three coming.

 

By the creators own luck the other three ran towards the bush where the horse was waiting. A yelp came from the bush but as the horse ran all three dogs were still on its heels, one with Dante's throwing dagger still lodged in its leg. With another slash of his blade he beheaded the cut dog as it went for his ankle then kicked the dog that had not been hurt yet towards the tree Visar was in. Visar's rocks had finished the other animal. In the moments respite Dante noticed the bite on his thigh and a second on his calve. Neither would be bad but without treatment they would infect and that could be.

 

"Kill it Visar!" He shouted as the dog got up and snarled at him. He didnt want to take another bite to finish this dog if it could be helped.

Visar stood against the tree, breathing heavily.

Burn my Soul!  Why am I the bloody bait?! he thought, but said nothing, trying to use the pain in his ribs as a focal point from panicking. 

 

They came, five medium sized hounds and one big one leading the pack, barking and flashing their sharp teeth.

 

Blood and Bloody Ashes!  was all Visar thought, and he was already jumping to the branch, scrambling up the tree.  After he finally managed to sit easy on the bough, Visar could hardly believe he had made it up in time with his injury, but the fear of those dogs snapping at his heels made him move without thinking.

 

Up in the tree, Visar got to work, loosing the rocks he had found with all the force in his arms he possessed.  Most of them missed, but a few found their mark, and Visar thanked the Light that he was able to help Dante out below a couple times.

 

Once half of the dogs went chasing the horse, Visar knew their chances of surviving were better.  He finished one of the dogs off with the rocks, sending it limping away into the woods.  Two left.  Visar clambored down from the tree to help Dante finish the last of them off.  Dante managed to cut one of them up, and that left the last one, the big one.

 

Visar picked up his sword where he had dropped it in trying to get up the tree, and rushed over to help Dante out.

 

"Kill it Visar!"

 

Visar swiped at the dog, but it managed to dodge, and quickly maneuvered behind Visar.  Visar whirled and tried to cut it again.

 

"I'm trying!"

 

Visar stepped back, narrowly missing being bitten in the hamstring.  Finally, he lost patience, and charged straight at the cursed animal.  The dog dodged and leapt up at him, and Visar lost a hold of his sword in the scuffle.  As Visar hit the ground with the dog over him, he put his arms up, trying to keep the dog's teeth from reaching his throat.

 

He screamed as the dog bit down ferociously on his arm. No matter how hard he tried, it wouldn't let go.  Finally, Visar found his dagger with his other hand and shoved it hard in the dog's throat.  At the same time, Dante reached them and hacked at the dog's back with his scimitar.  It's Dead.  Finally.

 

Dante helped Visar up. He struggled to breath.  His arm stung like mad, too, and he could feel blood oozing from it.

 

"Think it broke another rib." he gasped in pain.  "Help me with the arm, and we'll go hide again."  he somehow managed.

 

 

Their wounds from the dog fight bandaged as best as they could manage in the dark, Visar recovered his weapons, and they moved.  They had to go forward in the wooded copse a little, and try to conceal themselves from the bandits, who were no doubt close by.

 

The pain from his wounds was almost unbearable, but Visar knew if he slowed down he would most certainly die, and Dante would too.  I can't let Dante down, I just can't!  he repeated in his mind over and over again, willing himself to keep going.

 

 

Dante and Visar made it to the copse but not nearly as far away from the battle scene as he would have liked. Visar was slowing him down. He looked at his friend and wished the bloody horse had not run away. He could hold them off longer than Visar could in this state. If he could have Visar would have had time to ride away. Dante knew a thing or two about evasion. He might have been able to fool the bandits that they were still together for several days... the look in Dante's was one Visar knew too well. One Dante had in his eyes often when he was thinking of doing something stupid in times where he had to to protect his friend. It usually resulted in both of them in trouble.

 

Perhaps he could make a quick concealed shelter. Visar might be able to wait while Dante led the bandits away and if he went the opposite direction... as he was about to open his mouth Visar shook his head. Dante hated it when the man knew what he was thinking.

 

Either way they needed food and water. Dante had packed away some of the fish which would be dry and hard to choke down but they had no water and without that...

 

The men were close and Dante knew this. He set Visar down between a tree and a bush. He checked him over and worry came over him. Visar was hurt bad. Even a light touch on the man's ribs brought a grunt.

 

"We need water and we need medicine. Herbs are my area and your in no shape to get water." Visar of course protested. Dante wouldnt hear it. He moved a fallen branch on him to give Visar more cover and set out stalking in the night.

 

The men were closer than he thought. Much closer though in the dark they could not see very far Dante saw two men examining the dogs and two looking for tracks. A fifth man sat on a horse. There were two torches. One on on both groups of two. Scanning from a bush he saw the other horses nearby and more tracks then the five horses could account for. He was relieved to see them leading to where their own horse had been.

 

Moving inches at a time towards the horses and rolling his feet to avoid any noises and carefully choosing his steps. He made it to the horses and one by one removed the water skins. Those he set aside in a bush to free up his hands. There was only one more on the horse with a man on it. He wanted to hurt them. He began to undo saddle buckles and almost jumped when one of them shouted out. He wanted to exhale when he saw that it wasnt because of him. It was the group that was looking for their tracks. The man on the horse jumped off the horse and headed towards them and Dante saw the opportunity. Grabbing the last waterskin he used a dagger to cut the strap on the mans saddle and with a smile made it back to the other water skins. He over heard the man that was on the horse say to make camp here for the night and cook the dogs just as he vanished in a bush.

 

Medicine wise he found pine sap and managed to use part of his belt pouch to collect it. Making it back to Visar he dropped all five water skins with his usual smile that said he had been up to no good and set about using the sap to properly disinfect their wounds. The unbuckling had been useless if they werent going to pursue them tonight but repairing the cut strap would inconvenience them a bit.

 

"Ive been bad... however they will now need to stay close to the river to stay hydrated themselves. We will have to keep it down though. They are just a short ways away where we killed the dogs."

They went a ways beyond their battle with the dogs, and finally Dante found a potential shelter offering them some concealment.  Dante looked like he wanted to do something stupid, but Visar shook his head.  They would make it together, he said to himself, or they would not be able to make it back at all.

 

Yet they needed water.  Visar initially protested that Dante had to do all the work, but knew he wasn't strong enough to do anything about it.  Trusting Dante not to abandon him, Visar reluctantly sat and waited, trying to find a position against the tree that was not as painful.

 

Night fell, and Visar found his mind wandering aimlessly.  He was so tired, yet the dull pain of simply breathing against the tree kept him from getting any sleep.

 

After a while it began to register that Dante was back, a strange mischievous grin on his face.  Visar looked down at water bags.  Where had Dante gotten those?  And then his face paled as the only possibility dawned on him.  Dante must have stolen the water from the bandits.  The panic was easily quenched by the sticky poultice Dante applied to his arm where the dog had bitten him.  What on earth was this stuff?  Pine sap?!  Whatever it is it stings!

 

"Ive been bad... however they will now need to stay close to the river to stay hydrated themselves. We will have to keep it down though. They are just a short ways away where we killed the dogs."

 

"Where are they?  How many?" Visar asked Dante softly.  He himself was tired of being in such pain.  Tired of being all but useless as Dante took care of them.  If he was able to take the bandits on their feet and by surprise, he might at least take one or two of them with him to the grave, and Dante would surely be able to handle the rest and escape...

Visar seemed to be only looking worse. Dante sat down next to him and pulled out both dried and slightly over cooked fish he had saved and handed one to Visar. He waited until the fish was already being chewed on to avoid Visar blurting out when he heard how many there were. "There were five." He said as he handed Visar a water skin. "They held themselves in a way that makes me suspect they arent messing around. These guys have fought by sword before."

 

He had worried that Visar would be choking on the fish but it was Dante who nearly choked and was saved only with some water. (How the heck is Visar not gagging?) he thought. The fish tasted foul. Then Dante remembered Visar's roots. He must have ate worse fish than this coming from Tear.

 

"Tomorrow they are going to come for us. We cant out run them and we cant take them. I think we can slow them down some or even out the numbers a bit but I will need your help... we know what path they will be following. Ours. So we need to make it as treacherous as possible... they may even consider it not worth their time anymore." Dante knew that was a faint chance.

 

"I need sticks about three feet long and sharpened on both ends. I will be back in two hours. I have digging to do."

 

He tossed his one of his two remaining daggers down for Visar to use. This would dull it but a good mantrap in its best luck would only kill a horse and toss a rider. However if a second, not so deep hole were made to trip the horses legs and toss the rider into the man trap the odds would be 2 on 1.

 

When he found their trail Dante set to work. The thoughts were in his head that tomorrow would be the confrontation. Two hours to build this trap then him and Visar would have to be moving again towards the location of the Aes Sedai. If the plan worked the men would track on foot to avoid any more traps and they would make it. If not... well they would die fighting.

Visar chewed idly on the dried fish, trying not to make a face.  True, it was not very good, but it was not time to be picky about eating, and Visar let other thoughts shove the bad taste aside with practiced ease.  It was food, and it would help him have some strength, at least.

 

Strength against five men.  Two versus five, and maybe more...not very good odds, but I suppose better men than I have fought and survived worse.

 

Visar listened intently to Dante's plan.  If it managed to work, then it would do the job of evening the odds, and help remove their pursuer's mount advantage.

"I need sticks about three feet long and sharpened on both ends. I will be back in two hours. I have digging to do."

 

Visar nodded.  He thought he could at least manage that, while Dante did harder work.  The situation was too desperate for Visar to complain about not doing his share, especially since he knew his wound gave him a disadvantage.

 

"Thanks," Visar grunted when Dante tossed him a spare dagger.  "I think I'll need mine sharp for the fight anyway.  I'll get right to it."

 

Visar set about for saplings near their slightly sheltered cover.  Thankfully they were not in short supply, and although Visar caught plenty of thorns trying to fumble for suitable branches in the dark, he forced himself to the task, reminding himself that their lives depended on having as many sharp pointy sticks in their traps as possible.

 

He hacked and sawed down a bundle of branches, and then limped back carefully to the shelter.  Cutting everything to length, Visar whittled sharp points on each end.  He had some extra branches too that were too short, and he whittled them to points too.  Couldn't hurt to have some extras, he thought, and shorter branches might be easier to conceal in traps.

 

The first load done, Visar laboriously rose and went to get the second round.  The work was difficult and painful in the dark, and Visar accumulated quite a few scratches, not to mention a thick layer of pungent sap, but he forced himself to keep going, giving it everything he had.

 

When Dante returned, Visar had a couple fair sized piles of pointy sticks ready for him.  Visar rose in greeting, and went to pick up a bundle from the pile.  He grunted, surprised that he couldn't pick up as many as he wanted to, and then dropped a few so his load was more manageable.

 

"Lead the way." he managed to say, though he could feel the dull and sharp pains and his body's weariness protest every step he took.

They worked quickly. Even Visar working as fast as he could with his injury. It was a simple trick. Two traps. One in the path for the first person to come through and one for the first fool to take the only way around it. The holes werent big. It wasnt the man traps that were important. It was the hole in front of the man traps to break the horses legs. Every minute was less ground they could cover before they would be pursued again. After the hole were covered enough to meet both mens approvals they covered their tracks and retraced to the tree he had left Visar at and the two began moving with Dante supporting Visar's weight.

 

It began to get light rather quickly. They didnt have hope of hiding. They headed to where they last remember the Aes Sedai's cottage was supposed to be. They heard the horses before they saw them. They would only have lost two by the traps at the most. When it became apparent they would not be going any further Dante looked at Visar and nodded as the men came over the hill.

 

"It was an honor to serve with you friend." He said as they drew their weapons.

The traps set, Visar struggled to get to the hill where they would make their last stand.  Our last stand; didn't think it would happen like this, in the middle of nowhere...Visar had thought and feared of dying before, yet now, when death was surely certain, it somehow didn't bother him as much as he thought it would.  His only regret was that no one would likely ever find their bodies once these brigands were through with them.

 

Dawn broke, and soon after the men came up the hill in plain sight, weapons brandished.

 

"It was an honor to serve with you friend."  Dante said, and they both unsheathed their swords.

 

"You also, comrade.  May we find peace and rest after whatever happens."

 

There were four in front of them, slowing down to approach catiously.  Three had spears, once of which Visar recognized as his own lance.  The fourth, crouched behind the others, carried a long handled ax.

 

Four?  Only four?  Visar could hardly believe that their numbers were so reduced.  He began to hope.  Hope that they might somehow survive this battle after all.  He raised his sword and stood poised, ready to strike or defend.  He knew he could not afford to waste energy or charge them recklessly as he might be tempted to do in other circumstances.

 

Their enemies spread out, two facing them with the longest spears, and the other two moving to either side to flank them.  One of the spears lashed out at him, but Visar didn't move.  He knew it was a feint since it was out of distance, and probably an attempt to provoke him to go off guard.

 

"You will pay for our friends."one of them hissed, the glare of vengeance in his eyes.  The others said similar grim comments, and they tried to rush in at once.

 

A spear almost as long as the one facing Dante lashed out at Visar, and he had no choice but to strike it down with his sword.  Before he could strike back, another blow came in from the side, and he lurched back to avoid the whistling blade of the ax.  When the blow missed, Visar cut upwards, wounding the axman in the hands with his sword's back edge.

 

The man recoiled in pain and backed off, but the spearman was all Visar could focus on.  As he twisted to the side to dodge another thrust, the blade end of the spear ripped past him, slicing him in the side.  Visar yelled from the pain and knocked the spearhead down again with his sword, trying to get past the point and plant an attack of his own.  He thrust at the man's face, but he stepped back and his stab fell short of his target.

 

Once he had withdrawn a bit, Visar turned to Dante, who was trying to fend off two spearmen at once.  He moved to try to hit one of them in the flank, but something caught his attention in the corner of his eye.

 

As Visar turned, he saw two more men atop the ridge.  They flanked us?!  Another spearman approaching fast, and a man with a bow, an arrow already drawn, aimed at Dante.

 

"Dante!"  Visar screamed, and he hurled himself in front of the arrow's intended path.  As he skittered to a stop, Visar blinked, surprised that he wasn't dead or hit yet.  Had the arrow missed him?  He narrowed his eyes, and gulped.  The arrowpoint was inches from his throat, hovering in mid-air.  Visar drew a breath, and winced from both his broken rib, his arm, and the fresh cut on his belly, which was oozing warm blood.  He titled his head, not understanding how the arrow was just floating there, and just as suddenly it dropped to the ground, harmless.  Visar looked at the bowman, but the man had a similar shocked expression on his face.  He looked like he was completely frozen in place.  A startled grunt came from the spearman, who appeared to be caught in the same state of shock.

 

Looking back, Visar saw that Dante and the other opponents looked stiff, as if someone had made the most realistic looking statues out of the real men.  Then a strange, almost suffocating tightness surrounded himself, and he could not move anything but his head.

 

"Dante...?  What's going on?"  he asked, confused, and he saw two figures, one tall and one short, walk slowly to where they were.

As they were circled the spear men were going to try and kill or wound from a distance. In order to get to them both would have to dodge and parry spears first. Dante's first attempt to go in he took the point the spear in his side. His sword strike which he had positioned to strike with he instead brought down on the spear cutting the head off and barely escaping a second spear in his chest. He slashed out at the only one with an intact spear and narrowly avoided it instead. The man was good.

 

Visar did not seem to be doing too much better as he was cut on the side. Visar would survive that wound however. Dante's on the other hand he would not. The foot or so of spear sticking out of his body though hardly seemed to matter to him as much as killing these two before he died. He managed a kick on the one with the broken spear taking the man's breath and barely parried the spear. Seeing an opportunity to strike he went to behead the spear man but the man moved and instead took the blade across both eyes causing him to drop the spear as the other breathless broken speared man brought the staff of his broken spear down onto his collar bone with a sickening crack.

 

Darkness crept in from his peripheral vision. Dante slashed at the man with broken spear causing barely a flesh wound. He didnt know how long he had been fighting. He should have been hot yet he felt cold and tired. He felt the spear haft come down on his head. He heard Visar scream something but his head felt as though it were under water for all sound was concerned. He struck out one more time with what he thought would be his sword. He wasnt aware he had dropped it but it was just a fist that struck the man in the throat. He wished he had not dropped it as that would have been a killing blow. Instead as the earth rushed for him his thoughts were of failing Visar. Yet he never struck the earth. Instead he was hovering in the air.

 

Visar said something else. Dante didnt know what is was. He could comfort his friend at least though. "Its ok Visar. The creator is calling us home." (So much blood.) he thought as he stared at the ground. At least the pain had stopped.

 

Or so he had thought. His mind suddenly recalled when him and his brothers would jump into icy cold waters in the winter. He opened his eyes to see an ageless face and her hands on his head. He was wrapped in air and was thankful for it since he felt weak and hungry. Behind her stood her warder. "Visar. Is Visar alive?"

 

"He will live." the warder answered in a deep voice.

The rest of what happened on the hill seemed to happen in a blur, as if it was all a dream.  Dante fell, and Visar could see blood, a lot of it. 

 

The two who walked up turned out to be an Aes Sedai and her warder.  This must be the ones we were supposed to deliver the birds to!  Visar realized.

 

The warder went about tying bonds on the bandits frozen in place, whereas the Aes Sedai went right for Visar.  She touched him on the forehead, and a shudder ran through him, reminding him of all his wounds, old and fresh.

 

"Rather battered up, but he'll live.  His friend looks to be worse off, though."  She said, almost to no one.  Visar felt the strange tightness loosen, and felt himself drift to the ground.

 

He saw the Warder and the Aes Sedai pass, and the woman laid her hands on Dante.

 

Weakened from loss of blood, Visar felt himself start to lose consciousness.  The ageless face peered over him, and her hands touched him.  Visar opened his eyes wide as a shock of ice-cold rushed through him like a river rapids.  Once it had passed, he felt like he could finally breath again.  As he drifted to sleep soon after, Visar muttered about Dante.  A deep, calm voice answered him.

 

"Your friend is good hands."

 

Visar slept.

 

When he woke again, he was underneath a blanket, and felt the warm midday sun on his face.  Visar sat up, and immediately felt dizzy and weak.  Not to mention hungry.  He glanced around as his eyes adjusted to the bright light, and saw Dante next to him.

 

"You awake there, friend?"  Visar asked.  "I think we're going to be alright."