Between Two Forces: Part 2

January-31-2015

At the edge of a clearing she froze and sank down into the tall grass as the distant light of a torch reflected off of the trees at the opposite side of the clearing. The light moved as if the unseen bearer of the torch was waving it back and forth. The glow of another torch appeared at a different edge of the clearing a moment later the torch went dark.

Four shadowed figures, crouched low to blend in with the clearing's tall grass, made their way across the clearing seemingly focused on that wavering light. Soon enough they entered the forest near the torch and, blades drawn, moved into that wavering light. The clash of steel on steel filled the air and silhouettes danced across the light from the torch. The fight only lasted moments before silence fell once more. Then as if blown by a puff of wind the torch went out and Lyn again found herself facing darkness.

Lyn peered into the forest, searching for any sign of the survivors but no motion caught her eye. Everything seemed still. Finally, when she was content that she was alone, she rose from where she crouched. As she moved the tip of a blade brushed her cloaked shoulder.

"Turn around. Slowly."

Her heart pounded as she complied. Behind her stood an empire soldier. The emblem on his chest made her wince. It showed the crossed bow and dagger of the military assassins. That helped explain the courage of the Empire's soldiers who had crossed her path earlier. Of there was a detachment of assassin's on the field providing support, there had probably been another tailing that earlier group. They had been her brethren once however they didn't take kindly to those who left their order. She didn't recognize this man who stood before her but by the way his gaze sharpened when he saw her face he clearly recognized her. He barked a harsh syllable and she felt a kind of cold settle upon her. He'd just cast a spell on her. A silence spell.

"Lyn," he purred his voice low and dangerous, "There is a price on your head."

He grinned coldly, his teeth icebergs in the darkness, when she remained still.

"Not worried are you?" he chuckled as he gestured with his blade for her to lead the way through the forest; "They always did say that you were a calm one. Calm and cold, quite impassionate really."

Most mages couldn't cast without a vocal incantation. For most mages the silence spell would have rendered them vulnerable. Luckily Lyn wasn't like most mages. Lyn had worked her way around that particular problem long ago, right after she had met her master. Her master… she could do things with the power that Lyn had never seen. She had a different way of looking at magic than the Empire did, and some of that knowledge she passed onto her most faithful servants, such as Lyn. Now Lyn just had to wait for this swaggering idiot to lower his guard.

The man chattered confidently as he followed her through the woods. However in spite of the chatter he still kept his voice low pitched and his eyes roved the surrounding trees. The man wasn't as stupid as he appeared, he was just arrogant; they were after all still in uncontrolled territory. Still his arrogance astounded her; he hadn't even checked her for weapons.

They were heading back in the direction from which she had come in her flight. The lost time irked her, but at the moment she dared not act against her captor. He simply held too much of an advantage.

She had no doubt that of they were to fight she could beat him and escape, but there was the chance that in doing so the ruckus caused by their fight would draw in all nearby soldiers. As well there was always the chance that she could get injured. An injury would slow her down, and she could not afford to be slowed down; that would make things harder than they needed to be.

Still she had to act soon before this assassin was joined by more Empire soldiers.

A sudden intake of breath was the only warning she received before the assassin muttered another harsh phrase and vanished from her sight. She slowed and reached out with her senses. He was still nearby somewhere; she could still feel his aura even if he wasn't in sight.

A large figure stepped out of a thicket before her, a bow drawn and knocked arrow pointing at her heart. His blue rebel cloak hung over other weapons at his sides, she could see the bulges of the hilts in the cloth. Without a word he loosed an arrow into her leg. The arrowhead passed all the way through but the shaft stayed lodged in her flesh. The force of the impact knocked her leg out from under her and sent her tumbling to the ground.

"Come," he grunted, moving closer to lever her up by the arm, "I know someone who would talk to you."

The rebel staggered, dropping Lyn to the ground once more, as the tip of a sword burst through his chest. The man fell to his knees; the bow fell from his fingers to land with a soft thud in the dirt below.

"As do I," said the assassin as his blade slid from the rebel's back with the rasp of steel on steel, "And I saw her first."

With a roar the rebel surged to his feet and slipped a pair of war axes from beneath his cloak. The assassin stepped away in shock and vanished. Furious, the rebel spun searching for the vanished man.

"Coward!" He bellowed into the forest.

Blood dripped from the big man's wound. From the size of the puddle that was forming in the dirt Lyn could tell that if his wound wasn't seen to then the man would not last long.

Lyn forced herself to ignore her own pain, settle her breathing and calm her thoughts. She reached out again with her senses, this time trying to find where the assassin hid in the shadows. His life force thrummed in the trees above her. He had his attention fully on the big man so he did not feel her brush his consciousness. His attention wasn't on her. Neither of them paid her any mind now, now was her chance. She was injured but she would make do.

The assassin stepped from the shadows behind the rebel. The rebel, somehow sensing the other man's presence, spun with both axes swinging. The assassin easily rolled under the swing and slashed at the rebel's exposed arms. Sparks flew as the blade skittered along armour. The rebel retaliated and again the assassin skipped backwards out of reach.

Lyn kept an eye on the battle as she set to work. First she had to deal with her leg. She pulled a serrated blade from her boot and quickly sawed through the arrow shaft. Gritting her teeth she carefully pulled it free of her leg. In spite of her cautious movements the shaft came loose painfully. Renewed jarring pain rocked her as she pulled a rolled bandage loose and bound her leg tightly.

The assassin's spell of silence still held her as she collapsed to the ground after finishing with her leg. Time was against her however and she had to move, she couldn't let the pain get the better of her.

The effort of wordlessly casting a glamour on her immediate surroundings left her chilled and gasping for air. Her head swam briefly as the energy left her; still she managed to stay conscious through sheer force of will.

Before her the pair continued their battle, they appeared completely ignorant to her actions. Lyn rose as best she could and she hobbled off into the trees. In her place she left the frozen image of herself. Hopefully her deception would go unnoticed for long enough for her to get out of the mages range. However she had no idea of the man's strength or his range.

The sounds of violence faded behind her as she moved away, just as the clanging was a faint pinging in the distance the noises stopped. She froze and reached out with her senses once more. An ominous silence reigned sending shivers down her spine. There was nothing in the distance for her to sense, someone was hiding their presence well.

Disturbed she hurried onwards, only occasionally diving for cover as patrols of regular soldiers crossed her path. Now she moved as quickly as she could; only stopping every now and then to reach out with her senses. Each time she hunted for a sign of the mage, or any other people approaching, but each time she found no nearby or approaching her. The frequent stops slowed her down, but in her injured state she couldn't risk running into anyone else.

A long single note sounded on a horn in the distance. It was followed by another horn bellowing in a similar fashion from a different direction. After a few seconds both horns repeated their calls. Both sides were recalling their soldiers. She was almost in the clear.

Her heart lifted as she passed the clearing, passed the bodies of four rebel soldiers and kept on going, now she hunted for a sheltered area in which she could hide. Before reporting to her master she would have to stop, rebind her wound and rest. After that she would make her way back to report. She would be gone from here soon.

---

The assassin watched the woman hit the far treeline from near where he had first captured her. She was staggering along as swiftly as she could but he could see that the effort was draining and starting to take its toll. He could have continued after her, should have really, but those horns were sounding an immediate recall.

Besides... He kind of admired her. He found it astounding how she had run so quickly and so far with what could be a mortal leg injury. Not to mention he wanted to know how she had managed to cast a spell without speaking. He couldn't take her back, knowing the training of his own order he knew she would die before revealing those secrets. His best chance for finding the truth would be for her to escape.

He could only hope that they would again cross paths again in the future.

He could only hope.