Got a SUPER long chapter today. Lol. There was a lot I that I wanted to cover for this chapter and when I started writing it I did not plan for it to be so long. But hey chapter number ten people YEAH! We're really making some progress. maybe... possibly. Lol.
But anyway as always I hope you enjoy. :D
It must have really been true that the best way to a man's heart was through his stomach as Kormac was currently demonstrating as he gorged down his food, Li-Ming simply settled for an apple and some bread. After hearing what they said about their bags being destroyed along with the contents therein it was no question that both of them were hungry by the time they came back to town that afternoon with a piece of the sword.
On the outside it didn't look like anything special it looked like just a normal hilt as far as Leah could see. Rumford held the piece and turned it over in his hands. His idle inspections were only sating his own curiosity about the piece. He got bored of it and gave it back to the Stranger who was sitting in a chair next to him with something akin to a frown of discontent.
To everyone else it did seem to be like a normal sword fragment but to Li-Ming and Stranger it was much more. Li-Ming saw a faint blue aura surrounding the fragment and could feel its magical properties and so could the Stranger who held the fragment tightly in his hands as if trying to make something happen.
"That fragment seems very old and very powerful." Li-Ming said before biting into her apple.
The Stranger nodded, whatever of the little power the fragment possessed, he could feel it entering his body, but only by about a fraction. "Indeed. It feels familiar to me, though the rest is still unclear."
She frowned at his response. She had plenty of time to inspect herself on their way back and thought at the very least it would do something to bring back maybe a little bit of his memory. "Your sword would seem to mark you as a great champion." She said in hopes that would trigger a memory. The elaborate make of the hilt was very indicative a warrior of great prowess like a mighty gladiator and a warriors memories of battle were always their strongest.
"If that is what I am, then my strength has gone with my memory."
"Perhaps when the sword is complete it will restore both." It was only logical.
"Do you know where the other two pieces are, Li-Ming?" Deckard Cain asked.
"I have a clue, but not a very conclusive one." She replied, although it wouldn't have taken her long to pick up its magical energies once she got back out there.
"What clue?" Rumford asked.
She took another bite of her apple before answering. It wasn't going to be a simple answer, it was going to take some explaining. "Well, we're not the only ones seeking the sword. Kormac and I had to take the first piece from a witch named Maghda and her crazed minions."
Did she hear that right? Leah could swear she has heard that name before. Yes, she has heard of her before. She walked up to join them and said, "Uncle Deckard, they sound like those dark cultists you told me about."
Her input was unexpected since she never took their matters seriously before, Deckard Cain liked it though. "Very good, Leah. You have been paying attention." Now that they actually had her attention she was finding it hard to ignore them now. "Stranger, does any of this jar your memory?"
He took a second to think about it, searching deep within his memories but came up short in the end. "I have no memory of this coven…But I since a far darker shadow guiding its hand."
"This is all very informative but what does this have to do with the location of the next sword piece?" Rumford asked.
Li-Ming crossed her arms and leaned back against the wall. She took yet another bite if her apple and said. "Maghda taunted us, she claimed to know where the next piece was. She said it fell where only ancients may tread."
"Where only the ancients may tread?' Leah asked in a rhetorical tone and Li-Ming nodded regardless. "I think I know the place she may have been talking about."
"Huh? Where?" Li-Ming asked.
"I think she may have been referring to the Drowned Temple near the Festering Woods. I remember you telling me about it, Uncle." It was the only place Leah could think of that had anything to do with ancient people and it was the only place close enough where one of the shards may have landed.
Once again Deckard Cain's expression was one of relief and excitement. He was glad to see her taking things seriously instead of brushing them off as she normally did. It came with her youth he supposed, he wasn't much better when he was a younger man, but he regretted not taking them seriously sooner and he was glad to see Leah finally was.
He used to think it was a common trait among all young people until he met Li-Ming who took things as seriously as he did. He had gained a lot of respect for her very quickly, she was a real go getter and he suspected she had an important role in all of what was to come.
"Exactly Leah. The temple was home to the Nephalem."
"Who were the Nephalem?" Kormac asked.
"The Nephalem were ancient humans with fantastic powers. Legend holds that they waged a terrible battle and that their ghosts still wage with one another." Tales of the nephalem where among some of Leah's favorites when she was a kid. It came as no surprise to her that she would remember those details.
"If the Drowned Temple is where the next piece has fallen than that is where I will go to." Li-Ming said, getting up from the wall.
Looks like we're going back to the old routine again. Leah thought to herself.
"Wait, you're going now? You just got back from retrieving the first shard. Don't you want to, I don't know, rest or something?" Rumford asked.
"The coven may already be on the move to the next shard. It's a race my dear captain and I intend to win it. You don't want to see these shards fall into the wrong hands do you?"
He couldn't say for sure, as far as he could see it looked like a normal sword piece but the other side argued that it fell from the sky along with this mysterious man and may have well been the cause for the Khazra going mad out in the Fields. "N-no, I suppose I don't."
"Good." She turned to where Kormac was sitting and said, "Are you coming with?"
"Of course I am." He said. It's not that he wanted to go, they just got back from being gone since yesterday and he would have very much liked to be able to sit back and relax, but Li-Ming was right. The coven was more than likely on their way to the next piece as they spoke and if they got to the next piece first, that would only serve to complicate things even further.
Li-Ming smirked and said, "I knew I could count on you."
"Leah," Deckard Cain spoke up. "Your knowledge could prove invaluable. You should go and help our friends retrieve the sword piece."
"Absolutely, Uncle." Leah said. "I'm going to go back the inn to pack some things before we leave."
A little since of pride over took Leah as she packed her bag, she felt she was being useful in more ways than just playing big sister to Li-Ming and Kormac, even though he was way older than she was. Maybe it would make up for not helping them sooner, she knew that everything that was happening was important to them but she just laughed at them, but with the mentioning of this coven and their interest in the Strangers sword, things were becoming more and more interesting.
The rest of the group were standing outside waiting for Leah, Rumford included. He was talking with Li-Ming and Kormac watched and listened to their conversation. He was getting the distinct impression that Rumford had a thing for Li-Ming, which was understandable, she was young, attractive, bright and full of energy and maybe a little mysterious here and there and Rumford, though having little combat experience, even less than Li-Ming probably, seemed like an honorable man.
"You know, my grandfather used to tell me old stories of powerful heroes who performed incredible feats. You remind me of those heroes." Rumford told Li-Ming.
"I should think so." She replied in her usual arrogant manner that they had all become accustomed to by now.
"What will you two do should you encounter that witch again?"
"They are not our main concern. Right now finding the sword fragments is all that matters and should we run into that coven again while we're out there we will deal with them accordingly." Kormac replied.
Before Kormac had finished his sentence, Leah had walked out with her bow and arrows and her travel bag. She tucked some lose threads of hair behind her ear and said, "I'm ready to leave when you are."
"Hold on a minute!" Headrig exclaimed as he walked up to them.
"Good afternoon!" Li-Ming greeted happily.
"I have something for you and Kormac. They should come in handy." He reached into the big pocket in his work apron and pulled out two rings and a necklace. Li-Ming found this to be odd, not because he was carrying jewelry around but because said jewelry was socketed with magical gem stones. How and why Haedrig would have such things was unknown, we wasn't a jeweler and as far as she knew he didn't know any way to imbue anything with magical properties.
"Haedrig, where did you get these?" Li-Ming said grabbing hold of the magical items and holding them close to her face to inspect them. She held one of the rings up to the sun. The band was made of solid gold with a beautiful diamond in the center.
"I suppose you already know the little secret behind them then?" Haedrig asked but Li-Ming made no reply has she continued her inspection.
"What secret?" Leah asked grabbing the other ring to take in its beauty.
"They're magical." Li-Ming replied not looking away from the ring she was holding up.
"Really!"
"Aye. They were my wife's. I figured Li-Ming and Kormac could make use of them while they were out there."
Feeling the almost irresistible urge to ask about why Haedrig's wife had these magical jewels, Li-Ming knew it wasn't really any of her business and she didn't want to press him about his late wife while it was still too soon. She didn't want to upset him; ever since they first met they had a profound respect for one another and Li-Ming didn't want to do anything to tarnish it.
Her curiosity was short lived anyway when she remembered that anyone could use these to serve them in whatever practical manner they saw fit.
"Leah, may I see that ring?" Leah handed her the ring and Li-Ming inspected them gem. She's read many volumes on magical gem stones and how their magical properties vary from the types of gems imbued. She looked the other two over, the other ring baring a bright red ruby and the necklace baring a brilliant topaz.
After her inspection she gave the ruby to Kormac and the diamond to Leah. Both looked at each other and nudged their shoulders.
"So what do these gems do?" Leah asked.
"You'll see. I don't want to spoil the surprise." Li-Ming replied. Who knew that she had a since of humor?
After they left Tristram, none of them really spoke to one another as they made their way back the Fields of Misery and it was starting to bother Leah. Were they always this quite? Leah thought to herself.
It was getting closer to dark and the Cemetery of the Forsaken looked as creepy as ever, even if the undead were no longer rising of the graves therein. As she walked Li-Ming looked in the direction of the crypt where she found Leoric's crown and remembered the beast she fought within it that gave her that nasty bruise on her back. How that thing got in there and what it was, was a mystery to her, but she felt it had something to do with either Diablo's influence on King Leoric twenty years back or the coven.
Remnants of Diablo's influence still showed, even after twenty years. A dark and sinister atmosphere still lingered and the ruins of Old Tristram were full of it. It was like a bad odor that wouldn't leave after you worked hard to clean up the source. Diablo was a demon lord, the lord of terror, was his lingering corruption a testament to the power of the demon lords, or was it the kind of power that only the Prime Evils possessed? It was the fact of evil, she supposed, but for as much evil as there was in the world, there would always be someone to face it, like Isendra did twenty years ago whose labor along with the others that assisted her, did bear fruit.
Cicadas sounded their calls from within the trees and it was an oddly soothing sound. The sun was setting and the sky was painted over with beautiful oranges, purples and blues. Li-Ming was staring into the sunset trying her best to engrave the image to her memory. A sense of calm always came with this time of day and Li-Ming always found herself feeling at peace during this time and she always relished it.
"These fields used to be so beautiful. Uncle Deckard would tell me stories of them when I was a little girl?" Leah said.
"They are still beautiful Leah. You just have to know where to find the beauty."
She supposed Li-Ming was right but it was hard to remember the beauty in a lot of things when so many bad things happen all of the time.
It was difficult to see through the darkening trees as the sun continued to set and Leah could imagine how easy it would be to get lost out here. She felt something snap under her foot as she took a step, whipping sounds alerted them all to the trap that Leah, in her reverie had accidentally set off. She was facing a moment of paralysis, her mind was working through so much at once she couldn't do anything but watch as the tripwire set the trap lose and a large arm of many sticks and branches with spikes at the end swung its way towards her. Time almost seemed to slow down and Leah felt for certain she was about to die until, at the last moment, a ball of energy hit the trap, blasting it into pieces and the trap went flipping in awkward angles.
She stood there in disbelief, unable to speak or move. Her senses came back to her and she started breathing heavily after having discovered she was holding her breath. Li-Ming stood a few feet away with her arm stretched ahead of her and smoke rising from her hand.
"Are you alright?" She asked Leah.
"Ye-yeah. Thank you." Li-Ming smiled and Leah smiled back.
"Guys, steadfast!" Kormac shouted.
Twigs and branches were snapping and breaking in the distance and a deep thundering sound accompanied it, vibrating through the ground. Finally they could make out Goatmen were running towards them in all directions with vicious intent and all three of them readied themselves. Leah could see one clearly and carefully aimed her bow, her arrow flew and hit one of the goatman in the neck and it fell hard and skid across the ground and the rest of goatmen paid it no mind as they trampled over the body.
Li-Ming fired arcane missiles into the fray, hitting several, each one exploding into gore as the missiles hit home. Kormac did his best to keep those that got close away from the girls as they attacked from a distance. A goatman charged at him and knocked him to the ground. It tried to step on him but he rolled out of the way. He got up and the goatman tried charging again, Kormac held his hands out and grabbed the goatman's antlers. The strength of the beast pushed Kormac back but he did not falter. With a mighty twist he snapped the beast's neck.
What in the High Heavens? He looked at his hands and wondered how he did that. Before he thought about for too long he picked his ax up from the ground and went back into battle.
Two goatmen ran for Leah, she aimed her arrow and fired, striking one of the beasts in the heart. She did not have enough time to ready another arrow since the goatman was to close but her worry wasn't long, an ax flew by her and struck the beast in the chest. She looked back, Kormac was running up to her to grab his axe. He was really looking out for them.
Only one goatman remained, it went for Li-Ming since she was separated from the other two but it had made a very ignorant choice. Li-Ming raised her hand and fired a bolt of lightning towards. The creature screamed in pain before it fell on the ground as a smoldering, twitching carcass.
"Is everyone alright?" Li-Ming asked.
"I'm fine.' Leah answered. "Kormac?"
"Perfect." He replied. "Li-Ming, I think you have something you need to explain to me." Leah looked confused, she looked from Kormac to Li-Ming and back. What was going on now?
"I told you it was a surprised." Li-Ming said with a smile. She joined Leah and Kormac and said. "The ring I gave you is enchanted with a ruby that has made you stronger. Your strength is greater now and it will go back to normal as soon as you take the ring off."
"So that's it? I am as strong as a beast now?" She nodded. "That's incredible!"
"Leah, your ring makes you more resistant to elemental energies."
Leah looked at her ring and said, "So, I'm more durable?"
"In a manner, yes. I felt that out of the three of us, you would make more use of it."
"What does yours do?" Kormac asked.
Li-Ming pointed to her head and said, "Grants me greater intelligence. My mind is now more open to possibilities and thoughts. Should I think of a new way to use magic, I will instantly be open to how to do it."
"Oh I see, save the best one for yourself." Leah joked and Li-Ming simply pushed her playfully on the shoulder in response.
"That's strange. Why would Haedrig's wife have these kind of jewels?" Kormac asked.
"I asked myself that same question. I do not know why."
"Do you think he'll ever tell us?"
"If he feels he wants to talk about his wife, I am sure he will. But we have to give him space and time before we can touch the subject."
"She's right, Kormac. It's only been a few weeks." Leah said.
"I guess. In the meantime we should get moving before the sun completely sets."
They ran form the battle sight and they all made sure to check their footing from that moment onward so as to avoid running into anymore traps.
xxxxx
He wouldn't be able to stay for too much longer, not with the thieves' guild hot on his tale, it wasn't his fault he was just a better and much cleverer thief than they were. It was unfortunate because he preferred to take his time especially when women were involved but not all things play out as one might predict. He enjoyed his time with Sasha, not that he cared for her or her troublesome father for that matter, all he cared about was getting his hands on the relic he came for and selling it for a healthy profit.
Thanks to Sasha's father he couldn't get close enough to it for a proper inspection but he was confident in its authenticity. He wasn't worried that he was going to lose it, not with Sasha on his side, it wasn't hard to convince her, all he needed to do was charm her, and charm her he did with his devilish good looks and tales of adventure and promises of a long future together, it worked every time, and it wasn't too much longer that he was able to charm his way into her bed.
Since then it was almost every single night that they slept together; tonight would mark the last night that they would spend together before he left before the thieves' guild got a hold of him and none of them would have any clue as to what was really going on. Sasha's father was a dimwit of a man and as for Sasha herself, she was all too willing to lend him a hand.
They were kissing each other aggressively on lips before she pulled away and said, "So tomorrow, after father leaves, I'll hide the necklace so you can take it without any problems."
"That's my girl." Lyndon replied.
"You'll come back right?"
"Of course I will my love." He lied without flinching. He found that the best way to lie was to make yourself believe it so as to be more convincing.
He kissed her delicately to alleviate any doubt she may have had and she giggled, his thick mustache tickled her top lip. For the rest of the night they made rough love and it was starting to become a full time job to keep Sasha from screaming with ecstasy. Her father would kill him for sure if he found out that his daughter was no longer a virgin; his Christian values were deplorable to say the least.
xxxxx
Back in the fields of misery, all was quiet, Kormac was teasing the fire, poking it with a stick while Li-Ming was bathing in the river nearby sense she hadn't had a chance to wash up before they left and Leah was helping herself to some suppe. Kormac was nice enough to hunt a few rabbits which were currently roasting over the fire, he was a good cook too! The meat was juicy and tender and basically fell right off of the bone as she bit into it.
"Kormac, this is delicious." Leah said.
He smiled in appreciation and said, "Thank you. There is a trick to cooking the things you hunt."
"I suppose so, I haven't been hunting before so I might as well take your word for it."
"As a warrior you learn to live off of the land. They are essential skills to have if you hope to survive long if you find yourself out and alone in the wild."
"What are?" Li-Ming asked as she returned to camp, with her robes and gloves in her arm.
"We were just talking about hunting." Leah said.
"Oh." Li-Ming replied suddenly losing interest in the topic. She sat down and placed her stuff right next to her. "Saying grace over there?" She asked Kormac.
He had his eyes closed and his was mouthing something to himself and he didn't speak until he was finished. "Yes, my mother always had us say grace before we ate. I didn't think you would care too much for it so I didn't bother asking if you would care to join me but I made sure to say a prayer for Leah and you."
"You can spare me of all that." She said waving her hand as if to shoo the prayer away.
"Thank you, Kormac." Leah said, to show him some appreciation. Since Li-Ming was back from the river, A thought suddenly came to mind, a confession she wanted to share with her, about a secret that only her and her uncle knew about. Li-Ming was a wizard and a good one at that, Leah thought that maybe her expertise would be able to help her.
"Li-Ming, may I share something with you?"
Li-Ming was running her fingers through her still damp hair when she heard Leah speak. She read Leah's expression and felt that whatever she wanted to talk about must be serious. "Sure you can. What's on your mind?"
"It's kind of hard for me to talk about since it's been a problem for me ever since I was little and I have never spoken to anyone about it before, but I thought since you're a wizard I thought maybe you could give me some advice." Leah stopped a moment and blew out a breath of air she had been holding to help relieve her anxiety. "What I am trying to say is I also have great power within me."
Li-Ming raised an eyebrow as she pondered what Leah had said, because if she had power within her as she said then why couldn't she feel it. If it were anybody else she would have suspected such a claim to be a lie and as far as she knew Leah had no reason to lie.
"But the only difference between yours and mine is I have no control over it." It struck her, it couldn't have struck her harder than as if she had just taken a brick to the head. Li-Ming remembered Leah saying that the reason some prefer to leave magic alone was because some couldn't control it, she was referring to herself. There was no doubt left in Li-Ming's mind that Leah was telling the truth.
"That sounds…troubling." It was the only thing Li-Ming could think of. She personally couldn't share the feeling with Leah because she had never had problems controlling her magic before in the past. At least not as she was using it.
"It's only happened a few times in my life and only when I was in grave danger. Something rises up from deep within me and, well, I can't really explain it."
"Magic can respond to the emotions of the user, Leah. For example, if you're nervous or doubtful when you try to use it, it may not work at all. Do you see?"
"I think so. How do you do it?"
"I keep a clear mind. A clear mind and an intimate knowledge of oneself and their capabilities."
"A clear mind." Leah echoed, contemplating what Li-Ming told her.
"Try meditation."
"Meditation?" Leah snickered. She had never thought to use meditation in her life and she always thought people looked funny when they did their little sitting pose that she has come to associate with meditation.
"Yes." She said in a more serious tone to emphasize that it wasn't a joke. "Meditation is a great way tool. It can help you expand your mind to new thoughts and realizations about you and the world you live in and your relationship with it and the end result is crystal clarity." She waved her hand in front of her face as if wiping a foggy mirror to emphasize clarity.
Kormac could once again easily understand what she was talking about and knew that if he could then Leah could to.
"Do you see my point?" Li-Ming asked.
"I can." Kormac said holding his hand up and getting small rouse of laughter from the group.
"Yes." Leah replied. "I'll keep it in mind to try it when I have the time." And she meant it. She had no reason whatsoever to doubt Li-Ming on these matters and she trusted she wouldn't lead her astray.
The rest of the night was pretty normal with no more surprises. They all turned in after they ate, but Li-Ming was unable to fall asleep, she chose to look up at the night sky and watch the stars. She wondered what it would be like to see them up close, to be next to one, to feel their warmth. How wonderful it would be if it were possible and how free one would feel to be able to leave the burdens of this land.
Aside from the crackling embers of the fire they had made it was pretty quiet. As she stared into the sky she let her thoughts wonder to Isendra, that topic she forbade herself to think about. She turned on her side, hoping it would shake the thoughts away but it wasn't the same so she turned back to looking about the stars. A lonely feeling creeped its way into her gut and she rubbed her stomach to ease the feeling, she really missed Isendra.
No matter how fruitless she felt that it would be to so, she closed her eyes to force herself to sleep.
Morning came and Li-Ming awoke to Kormac gently kicking her in the arm. "Rise and shine, sleeping beauty."
"Can't it wait?" She asked rolling over.
"Nope. We have a sword piece to find." She didn't answer or get up. Kormac rubbed his chin and smirked to himself. "If you don't get up I will drag you by the leg." Li-Ming stood right up after that. "That's what I thought." He chuckled. "You should eat before we leave."
"Mhmm." Was all she was able to say, she was very tired. She waited for her senses to come about before she tried walking unless she wanted to stumble around like she had been drinking, and that she refuses to do because it wasn't very becoming. She couldn't wait until noon or so. At least then she would feel much better.
The Thieves guild had shown up way earlier than expected. If there was only good thing to come out of this is there was no way they were going to find the relic, Sasha made sure of that and they weren't going to kill her until they find it which could be hours. He had time, he needed to get to Tristram and pray to god that he didn't come across any of those disgusting goatmen on the way there. The guards would surely help him. All he needed to do was shed some fake tears, and tell them what was going on. Piece of cake.
He really had to count his lucky stars, as few there were, that he was able to escape in the first place. Being quick and agile had its perks, and most of the thieves guild were just drunken thugs with swords with little to no combat training; stupid bastards.
Lyndon ran through the forest as fast as he could, losing the relic was out of the question, he needed the money and he would be damned that after all of his hard work, if he lost it. He ran and ran and ran until he heard voices in the distance and they were close by. He looked both ways and jumped into a pile of bushes, out of sight. The voices got closer and he was able to make out a man and…two women!
He peeked through the bushes as the strangers walked by, the man was a giant and dressed head to toe in bulky armor; he could be a problem. The women on the other hand were a sight to behold, especially the one leading the group. A Xiansian, he's never personally seen one but he's heard enough about them to identify one, and a young and attractive Xiansian at that. What caught his attention even more was that despite her young and youthful appearance she held herself like a warrior, full of confidence and purpose.
"How enigmatic". He thought.
Maybe he could seek out their help, they were headed to the farm house anyway and they were all carrying weapons. All was not lost and it was time to put on his best acting performance yet.
"When all of this is over, I'm going to open my own little inn someday." Leah said.
"I don't think that's the life for me." Li-Ming replied.
"Well, if you ever want a job, I will consider your credentials."
"So kind." She said behind a faint hint of laughter.
Their fun was cut short when a troubled man with a thick mustache and messy black hair came running out from the trees. His shirt was soaked with sweat and he had a cut on his forehead, blood leaked from the wound and down his face.
"You there, please help! They're going to kill my friend!"
"What's going on?" Li-Ming asked. She looked the man over, he was drenched in sweat and his hands were bound with rope.
"Please, thieves are going to kill my friend if we don't do something!" Li-Ming looked at Kormac, who knew it would be best that they keep going to find the sword piece before Maghda and her coven did but the Templar in him wouldn't allow for them to do that. A sword wasn't worth the life of a human being. "Please." The man begged.
Empathy washed over Li-Ming in heartbeat and she has yet to let anyone down and she wasn't about to start.
"We should help him." Leah said.
"We are." Li-Ming replied. The man eyes grew bright and hopeful. Li-Ming grabbed him by the shoulder and said, "Do not worry. Your friend will be safe."
"Oh, thank you." He said in a sigh and closing his eyes with great relief. "Help me break these bonds and I'll lead the way." He turned around so Li-Ming could cut the rope. His hands were free and he rubbed his wrists. "Now follow me!" He motioned for them to follow him and they ran if they wanted to get there in time.
"So what do these thieves want with your friend?" Li-Ming asked as they ran.
"Her name is Sasha…she's just a farmer's daughter but she has a relic that the thieves are after." The man replied.
xxxxx
She sat helplessly with her hands and feet bound as the thieves ransacked her home and filled their pockets with what little items of value they had but they wouldn't find what they really wanted. She made damned sure of it.
A sweaty, bald man stepped out from the house with an angry scowl on his face, showing his yellow stained and rotting teeth. It was enough to make Sasha feel disgusted.
"Why don't you just make it easy on yourself and tell us where you've hidden the damned thing." The thief said.
"Forget it! Once Lyndon comes back with help, you going to be in big trouble!"
"You hear that lads! She thinks good old Lyndon is going to save her!" he and the rest of the thieves laughed arduously. "Let me tell you something girly." He knelt down and grabbed her chin so she was face to face with him. "He's not coming back. That man only cares about his own skin. He could care less about what happens to you." She had to fight not to vomit, the stench of his breath was so bad it held the potential to kill. "He's deserted you. So just hand it over."
She spit in his face and yelled. "I'll never tell you!"
He wiped the spit from his face and snarled. "Fine. If you won't talk, I'm sure we can all take turns in forcing you to loosen your tongue."
She closed her eyes and braced herself for what she felt was about to come until the gate to her farm was kicked open. Sasha smiled when she saw Lyndon run through with three strangers. She knew he would come back for her, she just knew it.
"Release the girl! The relic belongs to her!" Li-Ming demanded.
"Do you honestly believe what that man told you?" The thief pointed at Lyndon. "Don't let him fool you. Whatever story he's concocted was nothing more than a lie, I can assure you."
"Not according to what we see." Kormac retorted.
"Fine. Then we will kill all of you. Get'em boys!"
Taking care of the thieves was like clockwork, they could hardly put up a fight. They were sloppy and uncoordinated. Lyndon was able to fend them off using hand to hand combat. A thief swung his sword horizontally at Lyndon's head, but he easily ducked underneath it and countered grabbing the thief's wrist and neck and planting his foot behind his. Lyndon pushed and the thief fell, Lyndon then kicked him in the face knocking him out cold.
Leah stood back and shot her bow, providing cover fire for her friends. Striking them in them shoulders and chest mostly. She shot one on the knee and the arrow went straight through. The thief fell to the ground, screaming in pain and held onto his bloody and useless leg.
The thieves couldn't even get near Li-Ming, the thieves would charge at her and she would fire a wave of force spell at them, she almost appeared bored of the fight. She fired at one who was unlucky enough to fly into a tree.
Poor Kormac had it the worst when a few of the thieves decided to bum rush him since he was the largest of the group. Leah gave him support where she could, shooting some down. He wasn't outmatched by any means however. Each blow he dealt to the thieves was enough to knock them out cold and he may have possibly killed a few. When you're bashing people with a heavy metal shield and have enhanced strength thanks to a magic jewel, the possibility his difficult to rule out.
Three thieved remained, the leader and two others. Lyndon, Kormac, Li-Ming and Leah all stood and waited for them to make a move but judging by the thieves' fearful expressions, they didn't see that happening.
"You guys don't have to fight. You can leave calmly and no harm will come to you." Leah offered.
The thieves' expression went from fear to anger and frustration. They knew now that they didn't stand any sort of chance against them, especially not with that magic user on their side. "Come on boys." The leader ordered begrudgingly.
They walked passed and before the left the farm the leader turned and threatened, "This isn't over. The rest of the thieves' guild will find you. All of you." Then he walked away.
"Good riddance to bad rubbish." Lyndon said before walking back to get Sasha out of her bonds.
When she was free both her and Lyndon went inside the farm house, while Li-Ming, Leah and Kormac stayed outside to pile up all of the bodies and weapons. Whatever they were doing inside must have been important but Li-Ming and the other two didn't want to leave without making sure everything else was alright.
A moment passed and Lyndon walked out with a green trench coat and a high quality looking bow. It was of a dark wood and looked sturdy and better made then Leah's was. He also had two quivers attached to his hips full of arrows.
Li-Ming and Kormac looked at one another, hoping one would have an idea but both remained quiet and neither of them said anything.
"Do you have it?" Lyndon asked Sasha.
She reached into her blouse and pulled out an amulet made of stone with a green jewel in the center. "I hid it just like you asked." The thieves were not smart enough to think of searching her person. It was logical since most people hide things away from themselves, but Lyndon had taught her well. "You know father has grown suspicious of right? And, once he comes home to this mess he will know for sure and you will never be allowed on the farm again.
Kormac was getting an idea of what was going on and he was starting to really dislike the man they had just helped.
"That won't matter once we're married." Lyndon replied giving his best loving face he could attempt.
"It won't be long, right?"
"Of course, my dear! Soon we will settle down to a quiet life of tilling fields and raising brats… uh…children…. But first I have to sell this relic. Alas, I must travel away with my friend here to do so."
"You coming with me?" She was a more than a little taken aback.
"Yes, yes!" He replied excitedly. "You look like you know a lot about markets. Now, lead the way."
"Hold on!" Kormac intervened. "You may not like where we're going. If you want to get to town all you need do is go back the way we came." He hoped he would listen because he really did not want this man here to go with them.
"What is life without a little bit of adventure?" Lyndon replied, throwing his hands up for dramatic flair. "Besides, with the goatmen out in the fields it would be too dangerous for me to go out there on my own. If I want to make it back to my beloved here," He grabbed Sasha by the shoulders and gave her a loving smile that Kormac did not believe was genuine. "Then my best chance of survival would be to stick with you."
Li-Ming sighed. "What's your name?"
"Oh, pardon me. My name is Lyndon."
"Lyndon, I am Li-Ming and these two are Kormac and Leah." So Li-Ming and Leah, huh? Lyndon hoped to get to them more than just by their names. "Do you have everything you need?"
"Yes I do!" He said with a big smile.
"Then let's go. We're in a hurry and we don't want to waste any more time."
"After you." He motioned for them to lead the way.
At least the day didn't turn out completely rotten, he got the thieves guild taken care of, got the relic back and was now in the presence of two lovely ladies, life was good today, even if did start out horribly. He could only hope it would stay this way for a while and little did he know how wrong he would be.
Okie dokie I already have a pretty clear way of how I am going to start out the next chapter so hopefully it will not take me too long to get it out.
I would very much like to think Mortem Ensis47 for following! As always I am very happy to see people are liking what I am doing. :D