The secrets of her past revealed in the words of two Knights of Lycia. Now, to meet her grandfather, Lyn heads west, to Lycia, and to her destiny. A mountain range separates the Sacae Plains from Bern. There are many bandits lurking here, the cruelest of which are the Taliver. They wreak havoc on both Sacae and Bern, and their savagery knows no bounds. On her tenth day away from the plains, Lyn witnesses their atrocities herself.
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Chapter 3: Band of Mercenaries
Mark was jolted awake when Wanderer stumbled over a piece of rubble. It's been ten days since they met Lyn in the plains of Sacae. He looked up and saw dozens of smashed houses, shops and other buildings. He looked further and saw ruins as far as the eye could see. Well, there were signs of two villages (more like small clusters of less than five houses), and they looked like they should be fortified. Kat gasped at the sight.
"This place…" she began. "It's…"
"The entire area is in ruins," said Sain, frowning. "Odd. Why doesn't their marquess do anything to help?"
"Taliver Mountain is home to a gang of vicious, ruthless bandits," explained Lyn. "No marquess holds power here. My village was near here, on the other side of the mountain. My people were… The Taliver bandits came at night. It took only one night. The survivors numbered less than ten, including me. They're soulless beasts. I will never forgive them. Never."
Sain looked at her with sympathy. "Lyndis…"
"…" Kent was speechless.
"I am not running away. I will be back…someday," Lyn declared. "I'll be stronger…I will break their swords beneath me like twigs beneath a stallion's hooves. I will avenge my people. I'll do everything in my power."
"When the time comes, bring me with you."
"Sain."
"Don't forget me, either."
"Kent…"
"Should fate allow it, count us in."
"Yeah."
"Oh! You, too, Kat, Mark? I… You're…Thank you."
"Hey, what're friends for?" replied Mark.
Suddenly, as Kat looked up, she saw a white winged shape in the distance, flying at an angle perpendicular to their path. "Is that what I think it is?"
"If you're thinking of a pegasus, I believe yes. I wonder…" Lyn's voice trailed off.
"Is it possible Lundgren hired one as a spy? From what I remember, Ilia's main income is mercenary work, and pegasi are only found in that frigid wasteland." She noticed Lyn looked slightly offended.
"I don't think so," Kent disagreed. "Caelin isn't rich enough for Lundgren to have hired such a pricey mercenary without the money being missed."
"We only have your word for that, however," Mark said. "Not that you sound like the sort who would lie or be intentionally wrongly informed."
Before the red knight could reply, they turned past a mostly intact house and saw a small frightened girl with orchid-colored hair standing between a pegasus and two rough men with axes on their belts. They appeared to be trying to intimidate the girl, and from the looks of things they were doing quite well. Luckily, the group was behind who is apparently a Pegasus Knight.
"What's this? Be on your guard, Lyndis," warned Kent. "There seems to be some sort of commotion over there."
"That's… Could it be? Florina?" Lyn shouted, her voice incredulous. "Is that you?"
The girl turned around, looked up at Lyn, and let out a small gasp. "Ah! Lyn?"
"Florina! What are you doing in a place such as this?" Lyn spurred Wanderer closer to the situation and the others followed right behind.
"Lyn! Is it really you? I…I…" She ran over to Lyn, bursting into tears, her mount following.
The swordswoman wiped them away. "Come now, no crying!"
"I'm sorry."
"You are acquaintances?" asked Kent.
"She's my friend. This is Florina, a pegasus knight in training from Ilia. She's a little uncomfortable around men. Tell me, Florina, what happened here?"
"Well…um…When I heard that you had left…I decided to follow you. Then I saw this village… I flew down to ask if they had news of you. I didn't see these two, and…well…"
"Did your pegasus land on them?" guessed Mark.
"Well, I… A little…"
One of the bandits spoke up, clearly indignant at being ignored, spoke up, "Aha! You heard her! She admits her fault! She stepped on my friend, and now she's got to pay!"
"Did you apologize, Florina?" Lyn asked.
"Yes. I told them I was sorry many times over. They just wouldn't listen…"
"Don't cry. It's all right."
"Lyn…"
Lyn turned to face the bandits. "Listen, she's obviously sorry. Can't we just let this pass? You don't appear to be injured or anything."
The other bandit, who seemed to be the leader, spoke. "No chance. The girl goes with us-by force if need be!" He then made as if to shout. "Hey! C'mon out now, boys! The men are fair game, but don't put a scratch on the girls!" With that, the two brigands bolted into the ruins, the rubble making pursuit by horse impossible. As they fled, other bandits leapt out of the rubble, armed with axes, swords, or arrows.
"We've got to fight back!" said Lyn as she dismounted from Wanderer and unsheathed the Mani Katti.
"No, really?" snarked Mark as he did likewise and quickly assembled his staff. His sister got off of Kent as well and drew her dark judge brushes.
"Lyn… I…" Florina began.
"You're a pegasus knight, aren't you? You can fight, can't you?"
"…Yes!"
Lyn then turned to the two ttacticians. "Listen carefully, Mark, Kat. We're facing bandits. They're underlings, but we can't take them too lightly. Let's clear them out of here. Are you ready?" Mark and Kat gave a nod.
"We'll make sure we all get out of this alive," Kat declared. "It would be very unbecoming for tacticians in training to suffer a loss this soon in our career."
"The layout around here might make it difficult to fight. The same holds true for our foe, too. If we use these walls just so, they may ensure our victory."
In spite of the situation, Mark couldn't help but give a little chuckle. "Guess I'm not the only one learning here. Ten days ago, I wouldn't think you'd be giving orders."
"Lyn…Who're they?" Florina asked, her face red as the pointed at the siblings.
Lyn gave a smile as she turned her head to them, introduciing the older one first. "This is Mark. He's still an apprentice, but he's my tactician."
The Pegasus Knight's face went redder. "Oh, I see…Uh…Mark I'm pleased to meet you."
Lyn then indicated Mark's sister. "And this is Kat. She's also an apprentice tactician."
Florina's face noticeably returned to normal coloration upon turning to address the green-clad girl. "Oh, I see…Well, Kat…I'm pleased to meet you."
"Huh. Does she have the hots for my brother or what?" She turned to Lyn, and saw that she and the two knights seemed to be confused. "I mean, she was blushing as she looked at him. What else should I have assumed?"
"Florina's timid around men," the swordswoman explained.
"Oh, I see." Her face then turned serious. "Someone needs to alert the nearby villages." She turned to face Lyn. "Could you…"
Lyn nodded and took off to the nearest one. Mark turned to his sister. "You read my mind."
"Learned from the best."
"I'm far from the best, but I plan to be." He turned serious and started giving orders.. "All right. Sain, Kent, with me. Lances against the sword wielders, Swords for the axe-wielders. Kat, ride with Florina and direct her to the other village."
The two young girls hopped on Huey, Florina's pegasus, and took off.
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"Is anyone there?" Lyn called as she reached the village.
"Leave us alone, you thugs!" a voice came from one of the houses.
"Go away! Go away!" came another in the same house. "We've no more gold for you!"
"No, wait! Please! We're not bandits!" Lyn replied. "We want to help the village. Please listen!"
"Remain inside, everyone," a third voice came. "I'll go see what's happening." From one of the houses came a young man with light brown hair and brown eyes. By his appearance, he seemed to be an archer. He had a quiver on his back and his bow to his side. He approached Lyn and looked her over. "Not bandits, huh? So, who are you?"
"My name is Lyn. My colleagues and I are just traveling through here… We saw some bandits about. We're going to deal with them, but… we need you to go and warn the villagers."
She was about to turn and leave when the archer called back. "Hey! Wait!" She stopped and turned around. "The name's Wil. I'm a traveler of sorts, too. Listen, these villagers have been kind to me. Mind if I fight with you?"
"Not at all. We need all the help we can get! Welcome aboard, Wil!"
And with that, the two entered the fray.
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Mark was blocking a Mercenary's broadsword attack with his staff, which (the staff) was much tougher than its appearance would suggest. Sain and Kent were off handling other bandits, so he had been forced to confront this one. He delivered a kick to the groin, which made the bandit double over, and then he twirled his staff so that it would smack the bandit at the back of his head, knocking him out cold.
He was at work on tying the bandit's hands to his back when Lyn came over, someone else accompanying her.
"So, you are the tactician?" said the newcomer as he helped him up.
"That would be me. Name's Mark."
"I am Wil, master marksman."
"Pleasure to meet you."
"No, the pleasure is mine! It looks like there are bandits on the other side of that wall. To the east is another archer. So let's go for that thug to the north. He's all mine! Say the word, Mark!"
"Very well."
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After offing a sword-wielding bandit, Kat had Florina head to the other village. Once there, one of the villagers came out and approached them.
"You came to help the village?"
"I believe that would be the case," said Kat, putting an air of experience that would help make herself look older; a girl of eleven didn't look like the sort who should be out in the battlefield. Florina looked at least three or four years older than her, and actually was.
"That's good. With so many bandits, I wasn't sure what to do." He approached the two young girls. "It's not much, but please, take this money." When she would later inspect it, it would reveal the equivalent of 2000 gold pieces. "There is an armory to the southeast of us. Equip yourself as you see fit, and help us, please."
"We will." And Huey was soon in the air again.
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Seconds later, they landed as soon as Lyn hailed them. However, Florina noticed something.
"Lyn! What should I do? There's an archer!" She pointed at a person making small talk with Mark.
"What? Where!?" She then turned to see where her friend was pointing. "Oh, that's Wil."
The older tactician noticed them and instructed the new Archer to head over and meet them.
"Hi! You're one of Lyn's friends?" Wil greeted as he ran over to them.
Florina reeled Huey back right after Kat got off. "Um…"
"What… What is it? Are you unwell?"
"I'm sorry, Wil. Her name is Florina," Lyn introduced. "She's timid around men, and you…you've got a bow."
He looked at his weapon, then realized the justification of her fear. "Oh! I see! You must be a pegasus knight! I apologize for frightening you, but I do understand your fear of bows."
"I…um…I'm sorry…" said the (second-)youngest girl of the band. "Even looking…at a…bow…frightens me ever so much…"
"Of course, I understand. But you should really only fear the enemy's archers, not your own."
"Yes…of course…"
The green-clad girl walked over to the archer. "Hey there, Wil, was it? My name's Kat. I assume you met my brother Mark."
"Oh, hello, Kat." Wil then paused as he looked her over. "You look…"
"A bit young? You're the first to bring it up." During this, Florina and Lyn were directed by Mark elsewhere. "And yes, I am a bit young. I think Florina is actually older than I am, but I'm mature enough to undertsand death, so you don't have to worry about my 'innocence'."
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In a few more minutes, the bandits were wiped out (some incapacitated by Kat or Mark) and Lyn was facing the leader, whose name was Migal. Her stance was strangely relaxed, but Mark, who stood right next to her, was in a defensive position.
"Hey, listen! There's something I wanted to ask you," she said.
"Begging for your life so soon, wench?" Migal sneered.
"Are you... Taliver bandits?"
"Taliver?" He seemed to take offense to that name. "Those greedy monsters? We're nothing like them! Those fiends will even kill women and children! We're from Ganelon, and we know a little something of honor. We don't harm women, for one thing." He gave a dark chuckle. "After all, why kill what you can sell?"
"Nice to see you're pragmatic enough," snarked Mark.
"If you're not Taliver, then there's no reason for you to die here today." Lyn entered a stance. "If you would like to tuck your tails and flee, do so now," she advised.
"Best do what she says. All of your men have been taken care of by this little band we lead. And I assure you that if you keep crossing our path…" He twirled his staff again and entered an offensive stance. "…I can't guarantee that there'll be any more Ganelon bandits to speak of."
Migal was insulted at the fact that he was given the chance to flee like a coward. "You... You... No more courtesies! You're going to learn to watch your tongue!" And with that, he charged with his axe held high.
Mark answered to this by spinning his staff in front of himself, advising Lyn to stand by. As Migal brought down his axe, the tactician turned his spin at an angle so that his staff disarmed the Brigand as it came down on his wrist. As soon as the axe was dropped, he yelled. "Lyn! Now!"
And like an arrow whistling through the air, she flew forward, the Mani Katti aimed for Migal's gut, but the bandit leader—in spite of the pain in his wrist from the forcful disarm—managed to barely evade the thrust, although the Mani Katti was able to make a scratch.
And then Mark decided to play his trump card for this fight as he knocked the bandit's head with his staff. An honourable fighter would call this foul play, but as this wasn't a fight of honor… "Wil! Plan B!" From his vantage point at a roof Migal was looking away from, Wil drew an arrow and aimed. By the time the bandit recovered enough, the arrow was let loose and it found its way into Migal's midsection. Lyn guaranteed the kill with a stab to the heart.
"Ugh…You'll live to regret this… My brothers…The Ganelon bandits will not let this stand…" These were Migal's last words as he died.
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Later…
Everybody was gathered in one place near one of the villages. In spite of taking out her fair share of bandits earlier, Florina was shaking in fright from her experience.
Seeing her friend in such a state, Lyn approached her. "That's finally taken care of," she said.
"Lyn!"
"Florina… Why did you follow me? It's so dangerous."
The little girl just lowered her head to the ground. "Do you remember the knighting ceremony of the Pegasus Knights of Ilia?"
"Yes, you join a band of freelance soldiers to further your training. Is that what brought you here, Florina?"
"Uh-huh. I wanted to talk to you before I set out. But when I went to Sacae, I heard that you had left with some strangers, and…"
"You were worried for me?" Lyn finished. The mercenary-in-training nodded. "Thank you, but I'm more worried about you."
"Me?"
"Listen, most mercenaries are men, right? Bands of men? I can't imagine you being at all comfortable around them."
"I know, I know. It's just… I've always dreamt of being a pegasus knight. I imagined I would just…work it out. Somehow." Her face went glum. "After today, I'm not so sure. Maybe I should just…give up…" And she began to sob.
"Florina…Don't cry…" Lyn assured her as she embraced the Pegasus Knight.
"Yes! There's no reason to give up your dream!" agreed Sain as he approached them.
"Hm?" The two girls faced him.
"Oh dear," groaned Mark.
"Lovely Florina! I have the most brilliant idea!"
"Sain!" Kent admonished his companion.
"You should come with us! With the addition of Wil here, we're a fine group of soldiers, and freelance to boot!"
Wil was surprised at what was said. "Wait, did you just include me?"
The green Cavalier turned to face the Archer. "Of course! We were destined to meet here! It's fate! Come now, Lyndis's band of mercenaries is as good a training group as you will find anywhere!"
"Sain…This is no joking matter!" Kent continued.
Confused with Sain's offer, and a bit intimidated with his approach, Florina turned to face Lyn once more. "Lyndis? Um, Lyn? Mercenaries?'
"I can give you details later. This is all a bit rushed," Lyn replied. "However, Sain is right. Will you come with us, Florina?"
"Travel with you, Lyn? Truly?" Florina seemed to love the prospect. "I would be so…so happy!"
"Fantastic! Beauteous Florina! I am a knight of Caelin." The fellow lance wielder approahced the Pegasus Knight and made to take her hand as if to kiss it. "My name is Sain…"
Florina understandably reeled back, pulling away. "Eeek! Stay back! Don't get so close."
"Ah… Beautiful, and yet so modest!"
"I beg your forgiveness," Kent apologized as he put a hand to his face. "Calling us mercenaries…"
"No, I approve," Lyn said. "We can't leave Florina on her own. She requires special attention, though. Can I count on you?"
Kent gave a smile in response as he put his hand down. "Yes! You have but to ask."
"So…" Wil put in. "Is it really all right if I travel with you?"
"Oh, yes. Of course! If you're willing, Wil."
Kat chuckled from the pun, and the others turned to look at her as if she gained a second head. "What?"
Wil ignored it and turned back to Lyn. "Actually, I'm very grateful. Truth be told, all of my money was stolen, and I'm…at a bit of a crossroads. I would be honored to count myself one of Lyndis's Legion!"
"'Lyndis's Legion'? This is getting stranger with every day," said the leader of the group that was now named after her.
"You're telling me," agreed Mark. "Still, all the better. As tacticians, we need to learn the effectiveness of various units, and having these two is a godsend. To be honest, it was a bit worrying to just have you and two Cavaliers for the entire journey. Not that there's anything wrong with that."
"I just have a feeling we're gonna find more and more recruits soon," said Kat. "And not in the conventional way."
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O Florina Skylark
A friend of Lyn's who is.a pegasus knight earning her title. She's very timid around men. She's also the second youngest in the group, the first being me (Kat).
O Wil Durness
A very social youth from Pherae, in the Lycian League. He's our group's first archer, and the one to name it Lyndis's Legion.
X Migal
Leader of the Ganelon Bandits, who raided the nearby villages at Taliver mountain. Unlike the Taliver Bandits, who pillage and kill all without mercy, the Ganelon Bandits prefer to hold women for ransom.
