Ambush in Runegraiv

There's an old saying: No plan survives contact with the enemy.

Whether that plan involves a vacation, a game, or even a journey across cruel and unforgiving lands, something WILL go wrong and throw everything into chaos.

And in this case, bad guys, somehow, finding us leaving the whole twelve wagon convoy scared outta their minds after the white flag's been thrown aside.

Yep. Sometimes plans just go right out the window and all you can do is just hope for the best!

Being stuck in nice marshy wetlands is exactly what I wanted. And what better way to welcome my nice merry band of panicking dumbasses than a whole friggin' detachment of knights ready to slaughter us?

I mean, hey! A thousand guys on horseback vs 200ish men, women and children. Yeah, those are some good odds alright.

I mean, hey, escort missions can get REALLY boring if nothing happens, so fate decides to throw me a bone and make things exciting, because life is SO generous!

"This is madness!" Yes, thank you for stating the obvious.

Those words of wisdom are coming from none other than (because an dumbass like me can't put a basic thought to pronounce his real name) Fhin. I guess local huntsman turned rebel like him can tell which way the wind is blowing.

"Meilo, stop and think!" Fhin, I like you, but grabbing my arm and trying to reason with me is not the best idea right now. "The enemy outnumbers us ten-fold! If we make our stand here it will be a massacre and everything, we worked for will be for naught!"

At this point there is nothing more brutally satisfying than grinding my teeth together, impatiently eager for them to break and crack. And Fhin's pleading is certainly adding fuel to those flames!

"Okay, lemme hear what ya gotta say." I don't care how rude or dismissive I sound, I'm just not in the mood and we're already committed to setting up our wagons.

"Burn the wagons and all they hold. Deny Zunuil everything and scatter into the wilds!" Fhin frantic suggestion has a good point.

But still... If I do that.

"S'not gonna work." My rapid-fire words are quick to be reinforced, eager to squash any resistance. "Marshlands have all sorts of nasty surprises. Disease, alligators, witches, If the Z's don't get us, mother nature certainly will!

"Meilo!"

I swear at this point I can feel my mind snapping.

"Just SHUT IT!" I want nothing more than to just rip this guy's mouth off. "I just have fucking shit keep hitting the fan, and I have to deal with your fucking nagging! Y'know what? Either help or fuck off! Send me a post card!"

On second thought, that just sounds like a great idea.

"Y'know what? Nobody want to fight? Fuck off!" I begin pointing at people, doesn't matter if they are men, women or children, all of them are on sight. "You, you, you and especially you! Just get outta here!"

They weren't going to be much help anyways. After all, if you want a job done right, do it yourself!

I can feel my steaming breath hissing out of my clenching teeth hopping aboard one of the wagons with a crude looking boomstick in hands.

"That goes for all fucking three hundred? Three hundred? Four hundred, ahh da hell with it! Duzzen matter, don’t wanna fight! Fine! Got nothin' better to do? Pretty sure I can take down ten of them 'fore I set the whole convoy ablaze!" I don't even wait for a chance to breath despite my throat begging for a brief reprieve. "And I'll be sure to set the whole fucking thing to kingdom come, I just need the- fuck sakes, where's a match?"

The silence from the stunned crowd is not doing anyone any favors.

"Where's a fucking match?! People, do we WANT the bad guys to have all the cool toys we have?! Or are we all practicing for careers as fucking scarecrows! Language people! Language and legs! Please use one of them, you-"

Even though pain receptors are not a thing in the world of Runegraiv, the overpowering force of pins and needles smiting my cheek is more than enough to make me keel over. But the adrenaline raging through my veins allow me to easily recover and see a cold and furious Fhin.

The balls on this guy!

But of course, this guy, an elf, who's probably over a century old at the very least, with decades of combat experience, easily sidesteps me before his foot jerks my ankle and leaves me stumbling against the edge of the wagon. And worst of all, this guy pins me in place, because why wouldn't he?

"Ignoring your unhealthy use of your profane tongue, heed my words." His low ice-cold tone would be far more intimidating if this tightly contained inferno within me melted his threatening aura. "There is no way you can defeat Zunuil all on your own. Never mind the Red Blades! They'll cut you down before you can even make the first move!"

"Yeah, well here's the thing, buddy..." I hope he notices by my low tone alone. "I just don't care right now. So, like I said, you wanna help. Cool! You wanna run! No one's stoppin' ya! Just get off my fucking back!"

I can tell this guy hates my guts. I bet in his mind, Fhin wishes he can be anywhere else and not with me. Especially with the admittedly mad near-suicidal idea I have. But if he's willing to suck it up and deal with my useless ass, then I guess I have no choice then to deal with him.

After all, who's to say we can't hate each other AND coexist?

"Then what's your plan?"

With my mind clearing up, my eyes glance back at the frightened gazes of farmers, peasants, narrow minded idiots who know nothing but tending to crops and caring for no one but themselves. And these morons are looking to me, to us, for leadership. Glancing back at the wagons, I can feel gravity seeping beneath my heavy clothes, leaving me with nothing but a cold heavy push. Eyes shut, lips pursed, and the dread multiplying, I struggle to scoop up my resolve for this idea.

"If all of you are staying then..." The words are caught in my throat as I glance at a doe-eyed little girl clutching her hands close to her heart. It takes everything for me to force these words out. "Then all of you are fighting! We'll need all hands-on deck to win this one!