[Flashback]Veterans and Hunters

[Jaeden Kincade]

Jaeden’s breathing shortened even more as heard the heavy footsteps along the wooden bridge. His ears twitched at any conversation that may have taken a place between them. The wriggling he felt within the water caught his attention for a moment, but his patience as a hunter, learned and practice over the course of twelve years, allowed him to focus on the task at hand.

His hand gripped his long sword, keeping it low and as motionless as possible as the tip dipped into the surface of the stream. He waited, waited for the to reach the end of the bridge. Waited for that familiar sound of feet hitting soft earth and thick grass as opposed to hard wood. It was then that his head turned slightly, his left hand lifting to half cupping in front of his mouth. His lips puckered slightly, his tongue lifting to slightly touch the roof of his mouth. Then short, patterned high pitched whistles echoed out as the call to Vargas was given.

His body then turned as he planted his foot along the edge of the hill, ready to push himself up the ground until he heard the hooves Vargas’ horse. His feet pushed along the ground, moving himself along the bridge the opposite side the men would be looking for the hooves of Vargas’ horse as he slowly began to climb and approach the men from behind.

[Harlequill]

Only silence followed his bird call. Then a man could be heard saying "Wait, what was that?". He heard someone draw their sword just beyond the bridge, but he was the only one. The others were still confused about what had alarmed him. Their confusion ended abruptly with the hoofbeats of Vargas' horse as he galloped toward the bridge with lance leveled at the point man's chest. The two men in the back scrambled to drop their heavy load and ready their weapons. The one furthest from Jaeden stepped forward, to stand by his commander's side. As he shook himself free of a body and strapped on his shield the man closest to Jaeden turned to look over his shoulder. Though he saw the hunter, it was unlikely he would live to cry an alarm. As Jaeden went about his task at the rear of the column Vargas caught the point man in the chest with his lance, shattering over half of it along with most of his vital organs. Without pause the knight discarded his ruined weapon and drew his sword, continuing his charge. This was when the dangers of combat in the darkness reared their ugly head. Bones could be heard snapping, a sickening noise, as the horse's hoof was caught in a hole concealed by shadow and it was torn from its feet. Rolling away from the mess, the old man fell into the second guard from the rear and both of them tumbled out of sight along the trail. Jaeden was alone now. Perhaps with only one man alive by this time. If he was unlucky, then he now faced two as the leader turned to face him with torch and sword.

[Jaeden Kincade]

Jaeden’s feet carried him slowly towards the nearest foe as Vargas’ horse beat the ground, announcing it’s thunderous approach. Just as Vargas’ lance lowered, aiming for his first foe, the individual Jaeden was approaching turned his head to look over his shoulder. His timing was late however, as Jaeden’s sword swung through the air, cleaving into the side of the man’s neck, a splatter of blood jumping out from the wound before Jaeden simply pulled the sword back, dragging it’s sharp edge along the wound further.

His foe fell to the ground, blood now both leaking into the ground and down into his lungs from his throat rapidly. He would likely only remain conscious for another two chimes, and be alive for another ten at the most as he gripped his wound in a futile attempt to stop the bleeding. Jaeden’s gaze moved to the leader for a moment, before the sight of Vargas being thrown from his horse due to the misstep it took into a gopher hole sent him flying into another man, both of them tumbling down and out of sight. “Shyke,” Jaeden said as he slowly raised his blade in a medium guard at the leader, “the old man likely just broke his hip.”

“Okay then, let me get this strait,” Jaeden said, giving a teasing thrust with his sword to first check the leaders skill and reaction time, “you attack caravans, leave the monetary loot and take the bodies. Not only that, but you drag them through a predator infested woods like the Wild Lands, garnering only about three bells rest when you camp. Why are the bodies so important I wonder? I surely don’t think they’re to be used in fertilizing the garden.”

[Harlequill]

The two men could be seen, their images flickering like ghosts in the torchlight, hands on each other's shoulders trying to wrestle each other to the ground just off the trail. Vargas shifted his hand to the side and gouged at his opponent's eye with a thumb. The brigand responded by dragging the side of his foot down the older man's shin. Pitching over to the side in the struggle, Jaeden could hear a loud splash as they found the stream. The leader of the men deftly parried the blow of Jaeden's sword. They might be equals, or the leader may be just a shade better with the weapon. Making a few slashes of his own, he tested Jaeden's defenses. "They're worth something. That's all you need to know kid." With solid footwork and quick slashing strokes of his blade he began to press the attack. Vargas roared, though whether in pain or triumph it was hard to tell. The battle between the two men had moved beneath the bridge. The Knight's horse struggled feebly, its bones grinding together and its destroyed leg flopping uselessly. As the roar faded, hoping to catch Jaeden off guard, his opponent followed up a sword swipe by aiming a blow at the young man's head with his torch.

[Jaeden Kincade]

Jaeden simply chuckled as he moved the flat of his blade to block and parry each slash that came at him. “You’re doing this all wrong.” Jaeden said as he began circling around the leader, keeping his footing over the path, being mindful of his footing. “You’ve got to build a dialog of back and forth with me. Match wits and jab verbally with quips. When did body snatchers become just so boring? You at least got a name?”

Jaeden then slowly leaned back, narrowly avoiding a slash that came at his face before lunging forwards to thrust his sword into the leader’s chest, only to have it parried. He began stepping back as the leader pressed his attack, his whole body moving as his brought the flat of his blade over to parry or block an incoming strike. Such was not totally successful, however, as Jaeden felt the edge of the leader's blade nip lightly into his forearm as his block was shallow. “I’ll admit, you’re good with a blade,” Jaeden said as hopped back a couple of feet, just short of the leader's swinging range as he shook his arm slightly to dull the sting in his arm from the light cut, “but now you’re short of bodies to move the, uh, bodies. Yeah, that sounds right. Anyways, there any chance you'll consider surrendering, since you can't transport them all anymore?”

Jaeden’s eyes then narrowed, waiting for the leader to come in again. If he did, Jaeden would meet his movement forward with movement of his own. He would then block or parry the attack that the leader made as he moved in and simply attempt to throw his shoulder into the leader’s chest, knocking him down or off balance for a counter attack of his own. Battles such as these wasn’t completely about one’s swiftness with the blade, after all. Point in fact, it’s why Jaeden spoke and taunted as he fought, using words to ebb at the tolerance of his foe, make him possibly lose his head as he attacked.

[Jaeden Kincade]

Jaeden’s shoulder slammed into the leader’s chest, sending him stumbling back to the ground. Jaeden pressed the attack, moving in swiftly as he began thrusting his sword down at the fallen foe as Vargas and his opponent yelled out grunts and shouts of their own battle down near the stream. True to his skill, the leader swept his sword in front of him as Jaeden’s came plunging towards his chest, parrying the strike aside. His own sword then came back, the tip of it being thrust into Jaeden’s right leg as he screamed out in pain, dropping to one knee next to the leader.

His hand snatched out, gripping the cut and torn flesh as blood began to start flowing out, seeping the fabric of his clothing. He quickly looked up, noticing the leader already on his feet, his sword coming down for a killing strike. Jaeden quickly rose his own sword in defense as the edge of the leader’s longsword struck the flat of Jaeden’s blade, forcing it down, the edge cutting lightly into Jaeden’s scalp as he let out a small grunt. A slow grumble escaped Jaeden’s lips then as he used his strength, forcing the blade of the Leader back upward as he came to his feet. The leader began lifting his sword, preparing to move his own blade with the force Jaeden was putting out, only to swing it back around at Jaeden’s side. To his surprise, however, as Jaeden came to a full stand, his left fist shot upward through the air, catching the leader on the underside of his chin, one of his teeth breaking away flipping through the air before falling to the ground.

Jaeden’s left hand then shot down, grabbing the leader by the neckline of his leather armor, preventing him from stumbling further back. “Watch the face!” Jaeden growled before he punched out at the leader’s face again, this time with the hilt of his sword.

The leader stumbled backwards, falling to the ground as he groaned out for a moment. Jaeden began slowly stepping forward, limping from the wound on his leg as blood began to slide down the front of his face. Another scream from Vargas dragged Jaeden’s attention away for a moment as he looked down towards the stream. His attentions were drawn back immediately then as he felt a sudden burning sensation along his other leg. He quickly looked down to see the leader had already recovered, and was now thrusting the torch in his other hand into Jaeden’s good leg, setting the cloth on fire as it began to seer the flesh beneath. “Gah!” Jaeden yelled out as his sword swung around quickly, cutting through the wood of the torch and as it the flaming end hit the ground. Jaeden swatted at the burning patch along his leg, quickly snuffing out the flame before his eyes shot over towards the burning end of the torch laying along the ground. A quick, but painful sweeping kick of his foot sent it flying into the stream nearby before any serious fire to the forest itself could be started.

“You sunuvabitch!” Jaeden growled out, as the leader looked to him with a smile, blood pouring from his mouth.

“Won’t be able to move around as much now with both of your legs hurting like that,” the leader replied as he began stepping forward.

Jaeden couldn’t deny it as he began to edge backwards, his heals dragging along the ground as he was barely able to lift them due to the pain. He then took a couple steps to the side, moving towards the edge of the path as he held up his sword defensively. “So, you going to toy with me now?” Jaeden then said.

“No, I’ve wasted enough time here,” the leader said before he slashed his sword at Jaeden from the side, intent on starting a volley that would create an opening for him to kill Jaeden finally, due to his loss of motion.

Jaeden smirked as he came in, moving his sword to block the leader’s own strike. As the leader drew back his sword for another attack, Jaeden’s head lunged forward, his brow slamming into the leader’s face, further adding to the sting of his battered face. The leader’s head cocked back as he let out a yelp of pain and blood began to trickle out of his nose. “You’re swift with a sword, perhaps swifter than me,” Jaeden said as his left hand then snatched upward, grabbing the slaver by the back of his head, “but there’s the grappling aspect of a sword fight too, and you suck at it.”

Jaeden then pulled the leader’s head with his hand, forcing his head into the tree Jaeden along the side of the path that Jaeden had lured him towards. Jaeden’s sword hand then pushed out with all his strength as the leader’s sword was forced out of his hand, part in due to Jaeden’s strength and the leader’s own dazed senses after his head had impacted with the tree.

Jaeden didn’t hesitate to capitalize this time as his sword came swinging back, cutting through the leader’s thigh, causing him to yell out in pain and fall to his knees. Jaeden continued as his sword came swinging back again, cutting lightly into the leader’s chest, the leader’s leather armor preventing the cut from going to deep. The slice as only a set up, however, as Jaeden then drew back his arm with his swing, before thrusting the tip of his longsword into the leader’s chest, finding no resistance by the leather armor due to the cut he had just made. The leader gasped in shock at the wound, slowly staring down at the blade not sticking into his chest.

Jaeden leaned forward, the leader looking up to meet his gaze as he began to cough, trying to breath, which became difficult with Jaeden’s sword not sticking through his right lung. “Never did get your name.” Jaeden then said before pulling his sword free.

“Pity,” Jaeden then simply said before his sword was swung across the air, cutting halfway through the leader’s neck as his body went slamming into the ground from the strike. Jaeden held his sword in front of him, frowning as he looked over the blade. “Damn, that should have cut off his head. Looks like I need to sharpen this thing again.”

Jaeden’s head then turned towards the sounds of struggle, which had lessened, by the stream. He grunted, hobbling toward the sound. His body soon took a lean along a tree nearby, a exhale of relief given as he saw Vargas, kneeling over his opponent as he repeatedly slammed a rock into the man’s face. “Hey! Old man Knight!” Jaeden yelled out as Vargas suddenly stopped, quickly turning to look towards the shout. “I think he’s dead. Knock it off before your heart gives out on you.”

[Jaeden Kincade]

The sun was just rising as Jaeden stood over the bodies of the foes Vargas and him had slain, his fingers rifling through their pockets and packs as he let out a slow whistle. His finger hooked a twine as his whistling suddenly stopped. “Ahh, there we are.” Jaeden said, pulling a pouch free from the leader as a jingle of coins could be heard from within the pouch. He loosened the string around the pouch’s neck, spreading it opened as he looked inside, fumbling his fingers along the underside of the pouch to garner how much coin was inside. “Not too bad a bonus I would say.”

Jaeden then slowly looked over to Vargas, who was standing over the body of his horse. Lamed from breaking it’s leg due to a misstep in the forest, Vargas had seen to it personally that the horse was put out of it’s misery. Jaeden slipping the pouch of coins into his backpack, having retrieved it from where he had left it earlier on during their tracking. “Sorry about your loss, Vargas.” Jaeden said after giving the old knight another moment of silence. “So, what happens now?”

“Well, I promised the families I would bring their bodies back if I were able to find them.” Vargas said, rubbing his beard slightly as he looked over the three bodies that the raiders had taken. “It’ll be sort of hard without my horse.”

Jaeden then blinked as Vargas looked to him, immediately after saying that. “Uh, I sort of have two injured legs here.” Jaeden said, getting silence in response. He then let out a grumbled sign, his shoulders dropping slightly. “Fine. I’ll drag two of them if you carry one. Only back to their last camp though for today. I need to clean my wounds and bandage my legs. Plus giving them almost a full day for healing will at least allow me to bare the burden of dragging them further tomorrow.”

“That’s fine.” Vargas said with a smile before looking back down to the raiders. “What about them?”

“I’ve already taken what coin they have on them.” Jaeden said with a shrug as he began walking over to their victims. “Leave them for the crows and other scavengers I say. We’ll be far enough away that the larger scavengers won’t come looking for more from us, and they don’t deserve a burial as far as I’m concerned.”

Jaeden then grunted slightly, grabbing two of the wrapped bodies and slowly began dragging them, stepping up onto the bridge. Vargas knelt down, picking up the third victim as he began walking behind. “Did you find out from your opponent why they were even taking the bodies?” Jaeden then asked, his face slightly wincing with each step taken.

“We weren’t doing much talking during out fight.” Vargas replied, giving a shake of his head. “In the end, it doesn’t really matter. They’ve been stopped, and the bodies they took are going to be returned.”

“I suppose. Still, pretty weird.” Jaeden said, crossing the bridge as he looked with a depressed face up towards a small hill that had to be climbed.

Vargas just gave that soft, old man smile, looking to Jaeden again. “You sure you wouldn’t be interested in joining the kni..” Vargas began to say.

“No!” Jaeden said abruptly, cutting him off.

[Kelpie]

Jaedan: +1 Food Preservation, +1 Wilderness Survival, +5 Tracking, +5 Rhetoric, + 1 Cooking, +2 Persuasion, +2 Investigation, +1 Climbing, +2 Camouflage, +2 Leadership, +1 Land Navigation, +3 Trapping, +3 Longsword, +2 Unarmed Combat Lore: Showing Politeness Lore: Spices Lore: Investigating a Crime Scene Lore: Trailing Murderers Lore: Strategizing Lore: Confronting Body Snatchers Received: 30gm from looting the bodies. Mod note: Great job, Jaeden. Very detailed, very nice. The story was great and very interesting. Awesome interaction with Vargas and Jaedan in particular. ^_^