For the record, I do not know the plural form of Ixi.

Disclaimer: I do not own Neopets the Darkest Faerie.

Chapter 8:

Normally the knight would have just run to Cogham, it not being far away. The villagers were always able to fend for themselves fairly easily, the Ixies not posing as too great a threat. They were also trained in basic fighting so that they could hold off the attackers before help could arrive. But with the information of the assassin being in Cogham, they rode the unis. Three knights, a squire, and Roberta headed to the village when normally only two knights would be sent. Tor rose at the front, keeping an eye on Dawson who was just itching to get to Cogham, the place he was raised.

"At ease, Dawson. We'll be there soon." Tor guided his steed closer to the ground and ducked his head as they flew through the rocky tunnel that Tor had run through many times. They banked around a large stone pillar that went from the ground up to the roof of the cave and Tor felt a sudden pain in his abdomen. It was a reminder that he should not be fighting, instead he should be back at the castle, waiting for his wounds to heal. But he refused to sit back while there were neopets in need of help.

Tor heard the cries for help before he even exited the cave. He reached over his should and grabbed his sword, keeping one hand on the reins. As soon as they flew out of the cave he jumped off his uni and ran straight at an ixi who was jabbing at a young lupe relentlessly with her spear. Tor grabbed the wooden shaft and wrenched it away from his shocked opponent. He spun around once to gain momentum and cracked her over the head with her own weapon. The ixi slumped to the ground and Tor picked up the lupe and raced over to the food shop, the nearest place for him to hide.

"Stay here," he ordered gently before running back into battle, his sword in one hand and the spear in another. A flaming arrow sliced the air in front of him and stuck in the dirt next to his foot. He looked up to see archers lined up on the cliffs above. They would cause the most problems. He looked around for Roberta, ducking under the spear of a charging ixi and scoped the area for his friend whose long range spells would be useful. He watched her take out an Ixi archer by deflecting the flaming arrow back at him. She knew what she was doing already, but Tor knew that she couldn't do it alone.

His loud whistle pierced the air as Tor ran. His uni flew down beside him immediately at the call and Tor jumped on the steeds back. He guided it toward a cliff, swerving around arrows at the same time. Tor jumped off as they began to pass by the edge and landed in front of the stunned ixi. He lunged forward with his sword, killing the invader instantly. Tor sheathed his sword and picked up the bow. It would come in handy. He grabbed the quiver of arrows and took up, setting it up and taking aim at the ixi upon the nearest cliff. Archery wasn't his strongest point, but Master Torak had always insisted that he practice. Now it would all come in handy. Tor let go of the bowstring, sending the arrow through the air with a short hiss. The Ixi went down immediately, tumbling over the edge and into the river below.

The death went unnoticed and Tor was able to take out several more archers before the remaining ones caught sight of him. Once again Tor called to his uni, hopping onto its back as it flew by the overhang. He loaded another arrow and drew back the string. "Steady," he murmured to himself and the uni The arrow shot from the bow and into the neck of another archer. At the same moment a sickly orange light hit the last archer, sending him back into the wall of stone. The impact dislodged some rocks and sent them tumbling down onto the dazed neopet. "Nice one Roberta!" Tor mumbled, guiding the uni back to the ground where he jumped off and leaped back into the fray.

"You alright, Aldwin?" Tor asked the techno who was bleeding from his right cheek as he deflected a spear with his shield. The battle was thinning out quickly now, the villagers beginning to join in with whatever weapons they could find. Dawson was fighting side by side with a green grarrl who Tor knew as Bertrand. Elspeth from the food store was throwing rotted chokatos at the ixies as they fought, the mush getting into their eyes. Ingmar the armorer swung a giant hammer at any who came near the house he stood in front of that was one of the few not on fire with several young neopets peeking out the window.

"Fine," Aldwin answered. "These guys are nothing!"

"Right! We need to start forcing them back. Get to the others and give the order to make a line facing the ixies with their backs to the stream. They'll get nervous with their way back to the steppes cut off," Tor ordered quietly over his shoulder as he fought off the attacker. He heard Aldwin grunt with effort before responding,

"You sure that's a good idea? If they get nervous they might become more dangerous."

"I thought you said that these guys are nothing."

Aldwin chuckled. "You're gusty, Tor. I'll tell the others."

"Good luck."

The order spread quickly between the two of them and soon Tor found himself in between Roberta and Cadmere, their backs to the stream. The villagers who were in the fight joined the line and the remaining ixies found themselves suddenly huddled in a group facing their opponents on the wrong side of the line. Their hooves beat the ground nervously and Tor smirked in satisfaction. Now he could see how few there really were and the invaders could see it too.

"There is no way that you can win this fight," He called out in a strong voice. "Go back to your camp and don't return."

"What?" Dawson hissed. "We ought to kill them now!"

Tor narrowed his eyes at the squire. "Quiet, Dawson!" he ordered. The gelert still had much to learn and Tor would be speaking with him about it before the day was over. Some would say that he wasn't one to speak out of turn, but Tor would argue that there was a difference between speaking out of turn and speaking what was right, such as when King Skarl had denied Brightvale aide against the werelupe attack. He looked at the ixies again, his eyes burning. "This is a battle you will lose. If you return again then the consequences will be greater."

Slowly the ixi invaders began to bow their heads and drop their weapons. The line of defenders made a gap for them to move through between Tor and Roberta, forcing them to walk through the stream and soak their fur. Tor shared a glance with Roberta and they both nodded once to one another. Tor could see the thoughtful expression on her face when her eyes turned to him. Once the ixies were out of sight Tor jerked his head to Cadmere and Aldwin. "You two go and make sure they're gone. Keep an eye out for archers."

"You got it," Cadmere nodded and the two knights bounded off.

"Roberta, we need to check that the villagers are all fine."

"Looks like Dawson's already taking care of that." Tor looked over at the Squire to see him moving from on villager to the next, all of whom greeted the young gelert like family. Tor felt a twinge of annoyance at him for not waiting for orders. "Oh enough, Tor," Roberta said with exasperation. "You know that you would be doing the same, and if you hadn't been the one giving orders then you'd be in his place right now."

"You're right," Tor sighed. "These neopets are his family after all. I'm just stressed."

"I know." Roberta nodded sadly. "We'll be on our way soon. Here comes Mayor Jurgin."

They both turned to face the Mayor who was walking their way. The kacheek just barely came up to Tor's waist and Tor respectfully kept his head down as he bowed. The mayor bowed in return. "Sir Tormund, Lady Roberta, it is nice to see you once again, although the circumstances could have been nicer. The village thanks you both for the help."

"Of course, Mayor Jurgin," Roberta said. "The ixies only attack to put fear into the village. They have no gain for it other than to show power and for their own amusement."

"If they come back again then we'll just have to send an even stronger message," Tor added.

"Oh they will come back. And then they will come back again. It is a pattern that will never end," the mayor said sadly and truthfully. These battles between the village of Cogham and the Ixi Tribe had been going on for too many years to count, long before any of them had even been born.

Tor nodded in agreement. Looking up he saw Aldwin and Cadmere making their way back down the ridge. From the relaxed way they walked Tor knew that there was no longer a threat. He turned back to the mayor. "We need to be going soon, Mayor Jurgin. Do you mind…?"

Mayor Jurgin waved his arms. "No, go on! I'm sure that everyone will be glad to see their old friends."

Tor had once again forgotten how much he missed these neopets. Ruffie and Tad were still up to trouble, unfazed by the attack. Stanly was as paranoid as ever and Ingmar as rough as ever. Elspeth gave them a basket of various fruits. He and Roberta both felt the same reluctance to leave so abruptly, but the sooner they got to Meridell then the sooner they would be able to start their journey to find his sister and the Assassin.

…

"Dawson, walk with me a moment," Tor ordered as they reached the city of Meridell. He dismounted the uni and let it fly back to the stables. Dawson gave him a curious look, as did the other knights, but Roberta gave him a knowing glance. Tor waited until they were all gone before starting the walk to the castle with the squire.

"I apologize for speaking out of turn before," Dawson murmured after minutes of silence.

"It's fine. I understand why you did it too. Believe me on that one. But there are times when you keep silent and there are times when it's ok to speak up. Sometimes what you have to say needs to be heard. Today wasn't one of those times."

"I understand."

Tor nodded at the squire and kept on talking. "I know about your parents, that they were both killed during an ixi raid. But you don't become a knight in order to get the training needed so that you can get your revenge. That's not what it means. There is a code of honor that we are sworn by and killing without reason is not part of it."

"What about your sister?" Dawson asked. "You and Roberta are going to find her right? You can't just go waltzing into their den in the middle of daylight though, so I'm guessing you'll be going at night, sneaking around and killing any werelupe you encounter."

Tor cocked his head. "Can you honestly say that it's the same situation? Don't you think that if this had anything to do with the kingdom then King Skarl would send others with me? Two neopets walking alone into the heart of the werelupe pack is practically a suicide mission. This was a request of my own. The Assassin is a threat to all of us at this point. If it weren't for the opportunity of gaining some information then His Majesty would never let me go off."

"But you've done it before, right? I mean, that's what the rumors say about you and Roberta."

"Yes, and I ended up fighting the werelupe king while Roberta was trapped in a cage. A foolish mistake on her part and I walked into a situation where there was no other choice. See the Werelupe King stole Illusen's charm that kept her from being controlled by the Darkest Faerie. Roberta and I needed Illusen's help to get by the wall of dark magic circling the city. We went into the werelupe caves and split up to cover more ground. She found the charm but got caught into a trap, I killed the Werelupe King. The other werelupes were so shocked that they turned tail and ran."

"You speak as though it's an everyday occurrence, Tor, and yet from what I've heard you've never told anyone the entire story."

Tor nodded with a small smile as they walked toward the castle gates. "It's funny, when I still lived on the farm all I ever wanted was to be a hero, to be the guy that you heard in stories as a kid. Now I see that it's not what I thought it was. Somebody needed to step up and fight. Me and Roberta just did what we had to do. Now, do me a favor and not spread around what I told you."

"Of course not. Just between us, right?"

"Exactly. And don't forget my advice."