Against the Odds

The sound of clashing blades rang out as the battle went underway. The bandits had a few archers with them, who began returning fire against Mason and the others still at the wagon. An arrow nearly struck one of the horses, sending it into a panic. “I’ve got to cut them loose!” Mason yelled as he jumped to the horses. Another arrow whizzed past his head as he frantically went to work on disconnecting the horses from the wagon. Robina took cover near the back of the wagon, watching the positions of the archers while the other two continued on with their melee.

The clanging of steel echoed outward in booming shocks! Each of the combatants were focused on fatal blows. Robina had never seen such a battle but was watching with an intensity that she’d never had to muster before. ‘I have to keep watching! They’re gonna need me to fight too!’ She held tight to her weapon, and hoped that watching was enough to glean some skills before she was called to the fray. She found herself relying on a power that she didn’t know how to control, and that stuck her with a sense of unease. Although she was able to copy Kennedy’s moves, she didn’t have the same confidence behind each of the techniques and that made her nervous.

Kennedy took down another of the bandits, but there were still plenty left and their morale was still high. “Haven’t you had enough?” He was poised to strike again, his enemies could feel the intensity in every movement.

“One-eye must be military! Whoever takes him down gets a bonus!” The leader let out the mustering call, and it was met with cheers and howling! The bandits were far from ready to let up, even as two of their compatriots fell. Their fervor seemed to only be growing. They repeatedly struck at the formidable swordsman, switching positions with each other to keep up a nearly endless barrage!

He found himself on the back foot, their tactics leaving him little room to do anything but defend himself. ‘If I can’t counter attack soon, they're going to wear my blade out!’ He noticed that his sword was sustaining damage, new nicks were starting to appear due to the relentless assault. He glanced over at the other adventurer, and they too had their hands full. ‘They’re more organized than usual’ He pondered the sudden increase in size and tactics, as it was unusual for a bandit group this large and skilled to be in this region.

Meanwhile, by the wagon; one of the horses was finally freed and it fled into the woods. Mason hurried over to the next one, and began working on detaching it from the wagon. “Just one more!!!” as he yelled, an arrow found his arm. “AHHH!!!” he let out a terrible shriek and clutched his arm, as he fell backwards to the ground with a thud!

“Mason!” Robina rushed to his side and pulled him away from the remaining horse, who was now freaking out! Its massive hooves beat the ground, like a thundering drum, jarring the wagon about passengers and all! Looking at the wound, she could see it was serious. “You need, like a doctor!” She grabbed his hand and pressed it into his wound, and he screamed in agony. “You need to keep pressure on it!” She tore off a piece of her sleeve and pushed it over the seeping injury. ‘I guess those drills from school are finally paying off!’ The grim memory of her school's attempt to deal with a long ignored epidemic, in her home country, flashed across her mind.

Two more bandits fell, one to each of the swordsmen. And yet, others just filled in for them. The rage with which they fought indicated to Kennedy that they must have come across some very significant cargo, during their latest raid. ‘It can’t be’ His brow sweated with worry, ‘Have they plundered an Armament!?’ He saw the leader grinning at him as he directed his compatriots on the battlefield.

Another volley of arrows was let loose, Robina watched with terror as the attack rained down on her position. Mason shoved her out of the way just before an arrow was able to hit her, but it struck him instead and he yelled out in pain once more! The horse had also been struck, and it fell over in a slump. The rain diluted the red streams that ran across the ground, and the bitter smell of iron and copper tainted the air. The remaining passengers tried their best to remain quiet during the onslaught, but still they could be heard letting out cries occasionally.

Robina looked for the archers positions, ‘If I don’t stop them… We’re not gonna make it!’ She pressed herself into a sprint, energy coursing through her. ‘I feel lighter!’ With every step, she accelerated. Another volley of arrows was headed straight for her, “Not yet!!” With her newfound speed, she dashed out of the way of the way! The arrows plunged deep into the ground where she had just been, and the archers' faces paled. She was moving faster than they could track her now!

“S-she’s a Psyki User!!!” the leader turned his head as the archers yelled out in fear.

He saw her making a mad dash their way, her legs and sword were glowing with a crackling energy. “What the?! How strong is she?” He began ordering all the archers to prepare for melee combat.

Kennedy had taken down another, but he was still unable to disengage. ‘It’s nearly done for!’ His sword had taken so much damage that it was beginning to crack. “Which will give out first lads, my edge or your numbers!”

The other adventurer had suffered several injuries, but was still holding off the assault for the moment. By their estimation there were at least eighteen of them in total, a daunting number to be sure.

Every trade of blows tested the fighters to their limits, both sides were doing damage but the numbers still held the advantage. Robina hoped that she could turn the tide back, but her uncertainty in her newly gained skills left her filled with doubt about what she could do. ‘Just once, can I be like those heroes from my comics?’ Her resolve hardened with each step, fully committing her to her headlong dash into the dangerous unknown!