El Bandido: Hey everyone here's the third installment in this epic. =)
Silverhawk: Isn't that kind of corny and more importantly how come I didn't get to introduce the second chapter.
El Bandido: Because it says by El Bandido.
Silverhawk: Well you didn't actually write it.
El Bandido: That's a technicality I'll have you know besides I came up with most of the ideas.
Silverhawk: Well I…wait a minute…. We can argue later without boring everyone how bout we just let them read the story.
El Bandido: Fine I'll see you at the end of the page Silverhawk.
Silverhawk: And here's Chapter 2. Enjoy :)
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Chapter 2 – An Unexpected Ambush
The next morning, the vessel reached its destination, the port of Nabata. A range of mountains could be seen ahead as well as the harbor, with various people waving to the arriving boat.
"Hey Yida, that's Nabata right?" Zayn inquired.
"How should I know? I haven't been off Kafti before."
"Oh yeah."
"So how exactly are you going to gain the trust of the people?"
"That'll be a problem, I'll see what I can do."
"You sure are smooth sometimes." Yida said, chuckling.
"I do what I can." The thief smiled.
"Heh." Answered the tactician, apparently not much for words.
~*~
She aimed, and…FIRED! The arrow had found its mark on the bull's-eye of the target. The audience whooped and cheered as the youthful archer smiled, happy to be one step closer to triumph. However, she was not quite finished yet. She would have to beat yet one more opponent to win the competition. The two competitors were taken to a field, simply with two targets, one for each of them. Audrey was a little nervous and looked at her opponent, who looked very confident. He was rather tall, and had dirty blonde hair, in a cowlick style. Both archers had very sinewy builds, perfect for alacrity.
As the referee waved the flag, the blonde man stepped forward. The audience leaned forward and watched intently, mesmerized by the tense competition. The boy slipped an arrow out of his quiver and set it. He pointed his arrow at the mark, and let loose. The arrow flung forward and struck the big red circle, as expected. After a brief applaud, Audrey advanced and nocked her arrow, setting it in place. The young girl let go of the arrow. Her aim was true. After a brief applause, the youth stepped forward again and fired once more. The arrow marked an area just off the bull's-eye. The audience was astonished but nonetheless still clapped. The boy clenched his teeth as he stepped away and let his opponent take her shot. Audrey let her arrow fly, but her luck was just the same, missing the intended target by a miniscule amount.
The audience was anxious to see the boy take his final shot. As he adjusted his arrow and pulled it back, a creak could be heard from the tugging of the bowstring. The guy was sure of his skill, never letting his confidence ail. He let the bowstring go and the arrow flew, hitting the center mark exactly! The spectators cheered and waited eagerly for Audrey to take her shot. She stepped forward a final time and pulled her arrow back. A bead of sweat rolled down her cheek and she aimed directly at the target at the target. The arrow flew and it felt so long before it reached the target.
The projectile struck the mark but was once again off the center! The audience roared in cheer at the boy's victory, but Audrey was extremely disappointed. She tried to keep from crying and the whole world just disappeared from around her. She had trained so hard for this very moment, and now it was all for naught. The young archer dropped her bow and ran off.
She was in tears at her loss; she was so determined to win, but now her dreams were shattered. The arrow which had missed the bull's-eye tore through her heart.
"Hey." A voice behind Audrey calmly said.
"What do you want?" She asked with both anger and sadness in her voice. Audrey turned around to look at who was talking and saw her adversary from before.
The boy noticed her melancholy expression and had heard her crying. He walked over to her and sat down next to her. She was sniffling subtly now. "Well, I wanted to come out here and congratulate you on a match well shot, but…you don't seem to happy right now."
"What's there to be happy about?"
"Are you kidding? You got all the way to the finals. I've always dreamt about just getting to the finals. If I were you, I'd be overjoyed in having done so well among the best archers in Elibe."
"Well, I guess I did do pretty well, but, you know."
"Ah, I see where this is coming from. You really wanted to win didn't you?"
"Yeah, my friends and family back home had really high expectations for me."
"This isn't the end of the world you know. There's always next year." He said, trying to cheer her up.
"You're right, there is always next year." Her mood lightened and she wiped a tear drop with her finger.
"You'd better get going and train now. I'm expecting to seeing you here next year!" he said happily, smiling at her.
Audrey managed to smile back. "You'd better count on it! Say, what was your name again?"
"It's Zephyr, but I never told you before. And what about yours?"
"Audrey."
"All right Audrey, I'll see you next year then!" Zephyr said.
"Bye…" she said a little dazed, as her newfound rival picked up his bow and ambled off. She hadn't expected comforting, least of all from her opponent. Audrey gathered her belongings as well and walked off into the town, heading back towards Thria.
~*~
"Uh, Zayn. Didn't we already come this way?" inquired Yida.
"Er, no, of course not! The buildings here just all look the same!" Zayn said a little nervously. The group had been walking around for some time now, and apparently Zayn was getting them lost. Finally, Julina just decided to ask someone to guide them through the mountains and desert, though Zayn insisted they would find their way without help. Unfortunately, the answer the trio got was well, nothing. No one they asked knew how to get to the desert for the city of Vivalia was rather sheltered and rarely anyone would venture across the mountains, let alone the arid wasteland.
"Great. This is hopeless. It'll take forever to get to Etruria at this rate." Yida uttered.
"I have to agree with Yida on this one." Julina said and sat down on a nearby bench.
"C'mon guys, we'll find someone!" Zayn tried to press the group on, for he was the optimistic one.
Just then, an adolescent girl walked past, seeming to be hurriedly going somewhere. The prince quickly grabbed her arm and said desperately, "PLEASE! Would you guide us across the Nabata desert?"
She looked at him and was a bit scared. It wasn't every day someone would jump at your arm. She stepped back but the guy still clung to her arm. "Er, well I am heading back toward Lycia, so I guess you can follow me…" she said a bit reluctantly.
"GREAT!" Zayn yelled, shaking her hand furiously. Julina looked curiously at the girl. She had an odd sense of déjà vu. Suddenly, she recognized who it was! "Audrey," she exclaimed, "is that you?!"
"Julina! I didn't see you there!" Audrey replied excitedly. The two friends hadn't seen each other for quite a while. Julina had met Audrey four years ago when she went on a pilgrimage to visit a church in Thria. The two became quick friends, but had not seen each other since. It was quite a surprise to both of them to encounter each other again.
"You know her?" Both Zayn and Yida asked, surprised.
"Yes, I have a lot of catching up to do with Audrey." Julina smiled.
"So Julina, who are these guys?" Audrey asked curiously, obviously a little frightened by Zayn's frantic move before.
"Ah, I've got a lot to tell you. How about we talk about it on the way to the mountains?" Julina suggested. And with a new addition to the band, they proceeded to the mountains while Julina explained the whole situation to the archer.
"Zzzaaayyyynnnnnn…I'm so tired! Get me some food! I'm so hungry! Can't we take a rest?" The unexpected response came from Julina. She seemed so gentle before, and this was a new dimension to the cleric.
"Stop whining! We can't stop now! We'll rest once we get through the mountains. It shouldn't be too long now. Besides, we've gotta save the food in our pack for the desert." Yida replied. The fatigue was getting to the group, and causing everyone to be grouchy. The quartet was trekking across a thin pathway between the cliffs. Bits of rock from the cragged cliffs slowly dropped, so the troops hurried along to prevent from being injured.
"Please can we get SOME food? I'm starving here, and I won't be able to heal if I don't get the right nutrition!" Julina complained stubbornly.
"I'll get you some food. Maybe we can find some on this mountain." Zayn said, despite the fact that he was exhausted as well.
"You're too chivalrous, Zayn." Audrey said smirking.
The thief chuckled quietly and went off to look for some plants or perhaps a stray animal to eat.
~*~
It can't be...Milady left him for dead. The boy cannot be alive! Thought a brigand, concealed just behind a rock by the cliff. The lofty axe user turned to one of his subordinates. "Make sure the boy does not get through alive!" He spat at his underling.
"Yes sir. We'll defeat him with ease!" The minion and his companions began charging towards the young prince.
"You!" The leader shouted at another, "Send message to all of Schwartz's subjects and Her Majesty that the prince is alive!" The bandit ran off to fulfill his duty.
The prince was completely oblivious to the fact that there were bandits ready to attack him. As he searched for the scarce game or vegetation the mountain may have held, he suddenly heard a swift sound and was taken aback by the swing of an axe!
"Damn! I won't miss next time!" The bandit grinned menacingly at Zayn.
"Whoa! W-where'd you come from?" Zayn stuttered. He quickly took out his blade out from his cloak and swiped at his enemy, leaving a gash across the hefty man's cheek, and causing blood to drip. The thug grasped his cheek, but before he could say anything an arrow pierced him in the heart and he fell to the ground, dying instantly. Zayn looked back to see the source of the arrow and saw Audrey there, holding her trusty bow.
"We'll back you up Zayn!" Audrey shouted. "Yida, what should we do?" She asked, readying her bow to strike again.
"All right," the tactician quickly thought up a plan. There were five baddies left. "Zayn, you can take those three brigands to the right! Audrey, you arch the ones to the left, and Julina, heal anyone who needs it!" Yida commanded. All three nodded and carried out the plan.
Zayn immediately leapt at the first brigand hurtling his way. He slashed twice at the chest of the stocky brigand. The foe retaliated and nicked Zayn's shoulder. Zayn cut across the chest twice more, causing the brigand to drop to the ground, bleeding to death. He grasped his shoulder as Julina held up her staff and came to his aid. Making a short prayer to Saint Forrest, she lifted her staff. A row of stars floated over to Zayn and a serene blue glow surrounded his wound. It then disappeared without a trace. The prince thanked Julina and dashed off towards his next targets.
With her trusty bow, Audrey let go of the bowstring and struck the brute square in the eye. If that wasn't enough, she let off a second arrow without delay and punctured his stomach. The enemy plunged over and writhed in agonizing pain as both his eye and his belly bled profusely. However, his companion quickly rushed at Audrey and struck her sideways with the blunt end of the axe. Audrey flinched at the bruise caused on her side, but sent an arrow to counter. The hooligan attacked yet again, but this time hacked a large gash on Audrey's leg. She screamed and lost her balance, but struck her foe with another arrow. It hit his shoulder with enough force to send him off the cliff into the abyss. Audrey clutched her leg in pain as Julina rushed to her friend's aid, administering her staff's healing powers. The blood was rapidly pumping out of her leg and staining the grass crimson. As the curative light encircled her leg, the lesion sealed itself up, and Audrey ran ahead to assist Zayn with his enemies.
Zayn noticed two ruffians scurrying right at him. He prepared his dagger and jumped over the bandits just as they swung their axes. Landing behind them, he stabbed his dagger into one's back. The other, he grabbed and slit his throat, leaving a pool of blood as the foe perished instantly. The other brigand picked up his axe weakly and dove at Zayn, but Audrey quickly dispatched him with a swift arrow to the neck. The thug fell harmlessly as the group recuperated.
"I owe you a lot, Audrey. If it weren't for you I'd probably be dead by now." Zayn told the archer.
"Thanks, I have to protect you. After all, you are a prince." She responded. "And Julina, your healing saved both of us."
"It's my duty, and I would be devastated if I lost either one of you. Yida, your plan worked excellently. You're definitely the minds behind our oper-."
"Don't celebrate too quickly." Said a voice behind the rock in front of them. A tall bandit stepped out and introduced himself. "I am Unruh, one of Schwartz's soldiers. You will not make it to Etruria alive!" Unruh whipped out his axe and swung at the prince, who narrowly dodged the attempt. Zayn slashed back and made an X cross across his foe's back. Audrey fired at Unruh as well and nailed him in the side. "It'll take more than that to beat me!" The brigand picked out a simple target and managed to lacerate Julina's upper arm. The cleric flinched and fell back, dropping her healing staff. The alabaster robe began to soak up the blood and Audrey quickly went over to tend to Julina.
"Zayn, keep Unruh at bay, I'll take care of Julina!" Audrey yelled.
Zayn was furious and gladly followed Audrey's commands. He wildly slashed at Unruh, preventing the bulky brigand from countering. The thief was enraged that the man would even think of hurting Julina, or any servant of St. Forrest for that matter! Within a few seconds, the tall thug was defeated, with cuts and grazes all over his skin. "Dulce et decorum est…pro regina mori…" [cookie to anyone who knows what that sentence is based from :p]
~*~
Audrey opened a bottle and poured the contents on to Julina's wounded arm. It was a vulnerary, and would make the cleric's wounds mend. "I'm sorry I couldn't protect you Julina. I should have seen that scumbag coming at you." The archer said disappointedly.
"No it's fine. It was too quick to notice, even Yida wouldn't have seen that coming. Who would have expected him to come at a cleric of all people?"
Zayn walked back to the camp, upset that he had failed to safeguard his childhood friend. "Julina…I really let you down today."
"No, I already told Audrey. No one would have seen it coming. Besides, I'm fine now. The injury's not too bad. I'll muster through it." She managed to smile slightly.
"I promise that I won't let you get hurt again." Zayn simply stated.
"Oh that's not possible. If we're going to be in so many battles, I will definitely get hurt, but I have plenty at my disposal. I may not have a weapon, but I can survive."
"You're fragile though. Clerics weren't made to battle, so we'll have to watch you carefully." Audrey said.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine." Julina assured the two. "On the other hand…can we eat now?" Julina asked, wanting to fulfill her strong hunger.
Zayn and Audrey both chortled with laughter. "Yida's preparing dinner with the food we got in Vivalia and some of the game we received from Audrey's hunt. I can't wait to taste his cooking." Zayn said. Just then, the tactician walked out of his tent with a pleasant-smelling meal.
"Dinner!" Julina shouted, with a reaction akin to a child receiving candy.
"Yup. Let's dig in, and we'll start trudging through the desert tomorrow. Let's enjoy tonight while we can." Yida stated. The party feasted on their dinner and savored it, for the next day, even severer conditions would meet them in the desolate Nabata desert.
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El Bandido: You know I'd argue with you some more but I wonder if people even bothered to read this far.
Silverhawk: Our argument doesn't matter if people didn't bother to read it.
El Bandido: What was our argument anyway?
Silverhawk: That I was the one who actually wrote it.
El Bandido: But I actually thought of it.
Silverhawk: No you didn't!
El Bandido: Okay maybe I didn't. I wonder if people will review it…
Silverhawk: Stop changing the subject!
El Bandido: I'm not changing the subject (subliminally tells readers to review it)
Silverhawk: You can't tell readers that aren't even there.
El Bandido: Okay, now that I think about it, this story is bad. You wrote it :D.
Silverhawk: You'd bet I…wait a minute. It's actually the fault of your bad plot ideas.
(El Bandido quietly slinks away into the darkness)
Silverhawk: Hey, get back here! By the way, Chapter 3 should be up in a few days.