Part 1

  The path was dark and the night was cool. Summer insects buzzed lazily under the clear star filled sky. The night wind rustled nearby bushes. Everything was set. The road that led to town was a long winding one, and the merchant would never see the attack coming. The three bandits waited patiently for the jeweler’s cart to round the bend. At this time every other day, the jeweler met up with a local miner to buy expensive gems. Celar Dux looked over his shoulder at the man who was the miner. He was tied up, gagged, and barely conscious. His days worth of mined ore was packed neatly in a leather sack guarded by the second bandit, Ehart Fitz. The third bandit, Aegon Dymos, waited out of sight, ready to trigger the trap. The sound of the horse drawn cart drew near. The bandits froze with anticipation.

  Reginald T. Forrester was a respected man from the local town. His jewelry was sought after in many of the neighboring counties, and one of his masterfully cut rubies even sat upon the King’s crown. His skill in his handicraft was renowned. A Forrester ring was worth half a year’s salary in the Kingdom of Vornair. He prided himself on this fact. In order to craft such prized jewelry, Reginald needed the best gems. He had long ago made a friend who had a knack for locating the biggest, and most pure gemstones in the Kingdom. Reginald would meet Maxwell Stonehauler every other day to purchase fine gems, and talk about local rumors surrounding their crafts. Reginald was no fool, however, and always had an armed guard with him. His trusted friend, Fennton Gygax, was with him tonight. Fennton was a local guardsman, who often went with Reginald on his meetings. The evening had been pleasant, and the two were eager to meet with Maxwell, as he had informed them earlier of a precious stone he wanted to show them.

  As the cart rounded the bend in the road, a glaring white light erupted from the darkness. Flames engulfed the road in front of them. Fennton jumped from the cart, ready to defend his charge, but something caught him off guard in the darkness. A club smacked against his unprotected head, and the bright red glow of the flames faded to black. Reginald shielded his eyes from the bright flames. He cursed under his breath and called out for Fennton, who was laying on the ground under the cart. Reginald grew frantic as his horses neighed and bucked at the flames. He couldn’t control them and worry about Fennton. As he tried to calm the horses, and get them to turn around, Celar Dux leapt from the flames, wielding a short sword. Aegon Dymos was dragging Fennton’s unconscious body away, as Ehart began busting open the wagon door. Reginald screamed in terror at the sight of Celar! He threw the reins down and cowered on the cart, begging Celar to spare him. Celar held the blade of his short sword by Reginald’s neck, and told him to shut up, and keep quiet. Reginald was happy to oblige, not wanting to lose his life.

  Ehart managed to get into the small wagon, and began filling a leather sack with everything he could. Jeweler's tools, uncut gems, and half finished rings were all put into the sack. Ehart looked through everything, but was disappointed with the lack of quality items.

  “Hey boss! This cart ain’t filled with the good stuff!” Ehart shouted over the roaring flames.

  “Grab what you can!” Shouted Celar, as he grabbed Reginald by the collar. “You’re coming with us.” he said quietly as he began to drag Reginald off into the darkness. Reginald screamed and begged them not to take him, but the bandits didn’t care.

  “What are we gonna do with this one?” Asked Aegon, as Celar passed him and Fennton.

  “Kill ‘em. That no good guard isn’t going to bother in our affairs again.” replied Celar as he took Reginald over to the spot where Maxwell was bound. Reginald was passively being dragged, and did not resist. He had never lifted a finger to fight in his life, and his sedentary job had made him rather portly. Aegon did not think twice on the orders given to him by his leader. He slit Fennton’s throat with a dagger, and moved the corpse over to the bushes. Celar bound and gagged Reginald and tossed him down next to Maxwell, before bringing a swift and heavy backhanded smack across his temple. Reginald slumped over onto Maxwell.

  “We’ll need to clean the roadway. Burn the cart, and dump the leftover oil in the river. Aegon, load the horses with the prisoners and the loot. We’ll skip town before morning. The guards will be after Mr. Forrester I am sure.” Celar sneered, as he thought the raid had been a success. The three bandits set about their work, clearing the scene of their presence. After a while, the only thing left was a scorch mark on the road, and the burnt husk of Reginald Forrester’s wagon.

  Part 2

  Reginald slowly opened his eyes. He felt as if his head had been kicked by a horse, and he didn’t quite remember what happened. His vision slowly came into focus. He was hanging off of something, with his hands bound tightly over his head. He blinked a few times, and tried to free his hands. He couldn’t budge the knot keeping them tied together. He let out a solemn sigh, and dropped his head. Small tears beaded in his pudgy eyes. Then he heard a commotion. A scream, and the sound of someone getting beat echoed off of the dark walls. Reginald looked up, and saw that he was in a dark cave-like room. Perhaps a cellar. He didn’t quite know. There was a dim blue light coming from a small tunnel. There was nothing inside the room. The commotion quieted down, and the only sound that filled the air was the slow drip of water echoing off the walls.

  Makino Roka stood by the burned husk of the jeweler’s wagon. She looked the scene over carefully. It had been only a few hours since Reginald Forrester disappeared. His son, Aldren Forrester had alerted the authorities when his father failed to return home that evening. Makino Roka, who insisted on simply being called Roka, was then hired by the guard to track down Mr. Forrester and bring him home. She had been a professional tracker for many years, and usually bounced from town to town within Vornair. She had been in this particular town for a few months, and already managed to make a name for herself in the tracking world. She was a rough sort of girl, and she carried a long katana as her main weapon. She wore extremely light armor when out in the field, as bandits were a constant problem for wanderers such as herself.

  The town’s guard were not particularly adept at tracking down lost people, and often delegated such tasks to Bounty Hunters. Roka never associated herself with that group of professionals, but that was what she did for a living. As she stood there, looking at the scene, she noticed a slick spot on the road, where one of the bandits had spilled some oil. This told her how the fire had started, but not where Reginald was. Further inspection revealed some hastily covered tracks. Her keen eye followed the footprints into the brush, and she began tracking. She soon found horse prints, so she got on her own horse and slowly followed the trail. It looked as if there were four or five horses by the amount of prints, and she wondered if Mr. Forrester had been abducted by a gang of highwaymen. She pressed on, with a bit more speed just incase.

  Maxwell Stonehauler coughed a blob of red mucus up onto the floor. His left eye was swollen over, and he could barely glare at Celar Dux as the bandit leader hit him with a swift right hook.

  “Where is the stone, Max?” Celar asked with a sneering intonation. “I know you told the fat man about it. I know you found something marvelous. Tell me where you hid it.”

  “I won’t… Tell you anything…” Maxwell breathed heavily. The words barely left his dry, cracked lips. The miner was a hardy man, and in much better shape than Reginald, but he had been bound and beaten badly. He was barely conscious as Celar tried to pry the information out of him.

  “Max, come on. You’re making me angry. I don’t like beating you, you know. If you just tell me where it is, we’ll let you go, and be on our merry way.” Celar spoke in a soft, calm voice, but punctuated the sentence with a hard elbow jab to Max’s rib cage. The pain was intense, and Max gasped as the air left his lungs. He did not reply.

  “Aegon, go check on the fat man. We’ll see if he knows anything.” Celar commanded. Aegon then left the room and went into the back where Reginald was hanging. Reginald had been sitting quietly, listening to the bandits beat poor Maxwell senseless. When he heard Aegon’s footsteps coming down the hall, he began to shake uncontrollably.

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  “Hey! Fat man! Where’s the stone Max found?” Aegon held a dagger in his left hand and stood in the entrance to the room. Reginald could only see his outline as the light shadowed him from full view.

  “Please! No! Don’t hurt me!” pleaded Reginald, still shaking uncontrollably. He then voided himself in fear. Aegon sniffed the air and grimaced.

  “Did you just…?” He said as he backed out of the room with a disgusted look on his face. Reginald wept and cried as he thought his life was going to end. Aegon simply left and returned to the other Bandits.

  “The Fat Man just shat himself. I’m not dealing with him. Ehart, you go talk to him.” Aegon looked at Ehart, who then looked back and shook his head.

  “Hell no, I’m not dealing with a guy who can’t even hold his bowels.” Ehart snarled at Aegon.

  “Enough! Both of you. We need to location of the gem. Someone has to get it out of either of these idiots. Now, Ehart will stay here and watch Max. Aegon, you’ll come with me and we’ll talk some sense into the fat bastard. He’ll tell us where the gem is.” Celar grabbed Aegon by the shoulder and marched back into the cellar where Reginald was.

  Roka had traveled up the road, and around the bend. The horse tracks got tougher to locate once the trail lead off the main path. She continued on though. Her reputation was at stake. She was, after all, considered to be one of the best Bounty Hunters in this area of Vornair. She followed the clues left behind by the fleeing horses. Broken branches, indentations in the ground, and small hairs left snagged on rocks and plant limbs. She got off her own horse, and lead him through the small game trail. After a while, she came upon the horses. They were tied off by a wooden door in the ground. Roka kept her distance. She did not know what might be hiding nearby. She surveyed the scene for several minutes, before tying her horse off to a nearby tree, and quietly making her way toward the door.

  The four horses tied nearby took no notice of her, and they gave no indication of anything being amiss, so Roka went to the door and listened. She didn’t hear anything in the quiet of the mid-afternoon. She tugged on the door handle, and the cellar door slowly cracked open. Then she heard the terrified screams of someone within. She grabbed a dagger from her belt, and slipped into the darkness, prepared to fight. As her feet hit the first steps, her eyes slowly adjusted to the dim light. She quietly made her way down the hall toward the screaming. As Roka approached the first doorway, she peeked inside. She saw A bandit overlooking a prisoner. It wasn’t Reginald Forrester. The screams continued. Roka knew there was at least one more prisoner down here. She stepped into the room where Maxwell and Ehart were. Ehart was leaning against a wooden support beam looking at Maxwell with a disgusted look on his face. Maxwell was slumped over, with his head hanging down and arms bound over his head. Roka didn’t know if he was alive or not, but she was not about to let the Bandit beat the man any further. She gripped her dagger tightly, and with a few silent steps made her way to Ehart.

  A hand cupped over his mouth, and a sharp searing pain entered his rib cage. Ehart couldn’t scream, and his lungs quickly filled with blood. As he was slowly laid on the floor, he looked up, and saw the beautiful eyes of a young female. He thought he was entering a dream as his vision faded to black…

  Part 3

  Celar Dux and Aegon Dymos were standing right in front of Reginald. They were sneering at him, as they berated him for voiding his bowels. Reginald whimpered, and replied weakly to the taunts, begging them to not harm him any further.

  “You want us to stop? Then tell us about the gem.” Celar said in a cold tone. Reginald looked up at Celar.

  “Al--Alright… You’ll let me go if I tell you what I know?” Reginald said. Celar simply nodded at him, expecting Reginald to continue. “Maxwell… He found a diamond as large as a brick. He didn’t tell me where it was though! He simply said he wanted to show me! That’s all I know! Don’t hurt me!”

  “Bull Reggie… Bull. I know he told you where it was, and that you were both on your way to see it. Where is it?” Celar swung a closed fist at Reginald’s face, and connected a hard blow to his cheek. Reginald screamed in pain, and began to tell Celar everything that he and Maxwell talked about regarding the diamond.

  Roka set the body of Ehart Fitz quietly on the ground and then went over to Maxwell. He was unconscious. She cut him free of the bindings, and laid him flat on the floor. He looked to be in bad shape. Then she heard a scream from down the hallway. She quickly made her way to the hall again and peered out. She could see a room further down the hall. Quietly she approached. She looked into the dark room, and her eyes began to adjust. There were three men inside the room. One was tied to the wall. She couldn’t tell if it was Reginald Forrester or not. As she watched one of the men strike the prisoner, she snuck into the room. The darkness made it easy for her to hide, and the screams of the man covered her footsteps.

  Aegon looked over his shoulder as he thought he heard something, but shrugged as he didn’t see anything. He turned back to watch Celar remove a knife from his belt and hold it up to Reginald.

  “You did great Reggie. We’re going to make sure you don’t tattle on us though. Open your mouth!” Celar reached over and violently pulled Reginald’s tongue out. He then swiftly cut the tongue off. Reginald screamed in agony as blood spurted from the wound. Celar threw the tongue on the ground and stomped on it. At this moment, Roka leapt from the shadows wielding her Katana. She slashed out at Aegon, who was unprepared for the attack. He fell over as her sword ripped a gash in his back. Celar snarled as Aegon fell, and drew his short sword. He lunged at Roka and the two began to duel.

  Roka was fast, and managed to block and parry Celar’s attacks. Celar thrust and cut at Roka, trying to break through her defenses. He was violent, tenacious, and trained. This kept Roka from being able to attack. Several seconds past, and Roka saw an opening. She feinted left, and then brought the blade twisting up. Celar caught the feint at the last second, and backed off a millimeter. The tip of Roka’s sharp katana cut the bandit through his shirt and left a large bloody line on his chest. Celar backed up more and then, in an instant, made a dash for the exit. Roka went to follow, but stopped as Reginald groaned. She went over to him. Reginald couldn’t speak. Celar had cut his entire tongue out from the base. Roka knew he needed a doctor as soon as possible, but she couldn’t get Maxwell and Reginald back to town alone. She cut Reginald down, and told him to come with her. He limped behind Roka as they made their way back to Maxwell. Meanwhile, Aegon lay on the cellar floor, still breathing.

  When they made it to Maxwell, Roka was relieved to see he was awake. She asked him to get up, and he did so with great difficulty. She motioned for them both to follow her out. They slowly, and carefully made their way toward the door. Roka kept her sword ready, anticipating a surprise attack from Celar. He had long fled though, as the door to the cellar was wide open. Roka helped the two injured men up the small stairway and out into the evening. The sun had just set, and the cool night air was still. Two horses were still tied up at the cellar door, and Roka still had hers. She was glad that in his haste to escape, Celar did not cut the horses free.

  Roka assisted Reginald and Maxwell onto their horses, and helped guide them over to where she hid hers. She kept a close eye on the injured men as they sat on the horses, barely able to stay upright. She tied the two horses together with a lead rope, and then secured the rope to her horse. Roka then hopped on her horse, and began move slowly back toward town. She had rescued Reginald and a bonus prisoner. Now she would return and get her reward. Roka hoped this success would add more fame to her reputation within the Kingdom of Vornair. She was bothered though, that Celar escaped. She wondered if she would ever cross paths with the bandit leader again.

  Aegon groaned. His back was on fire, and warm sticky blood had gathered and began to dry in a small pool under him. He opened his eyes and looked around. Reginald was gone, and so was the person who attacked him.

  “Celar? Ehart!?” Aegon called, but no one answered. He slowly got up, and hobbled out of the cellar. He sat down on a crate and began searching for some bandages to wrap around his torso. His back wasn’t bleeding that bad, and he thought the wound couldn’t be so severe. As he wrapped his body in shreds from an old tunic, he wondered who it was who attacked them, if they killed Celar and Ehart, and where Reginald went. Then he saw a leg sticking out from behind the wall support. He got up and limped over to see the dead body of Ehart.

  “Damn it..” He muttered as he knelt down and closed Eharts lifeless eyes. He then sat on a nearby crate, taking some time to gather his thoughts before he would leave the cellar hide-out.

  Celar Dux raced through the woods on his horse. Who ever had found their hide-out would no doubt be chasing him. His thoughts turned to Aegon and Ehart. He hoped they would be alright. He thought about turning back to save his friends several times, but the thought of facing off against that woman angered him. She was well trained. He couldn’t break her defense. She was a girl on top of all that. He was enraged. He cast the thoughts out of his head, and focused on the road ahead. He did not know where he was going, but he needed to get out of the county as fast as possible. He may even have to flee Vornair all together. He didn’t want to leave his friends behind, but if he was caught, he’d be executed for sure. Celar Dux was a career criminal, and one of the best bandits in Vornair. He was not going to be executed.