A Taste of the Past

It had been four days since they entered the Huelsn Empire, and everything went smoothly so far. For everyone else they were just two men traveling through the country together with their wives. Alex noticed that most of the people he saw on the street were men. The woman he saw were following behind a man or even fewer that were going alone tried their best not to draw any attention to them. All the shops they passed by and Inns they stayed at were run by men. Violet kept her hair and most of her face hidden under the cloak, when they were outside. Cera did the same and so did nearly every woman they saw, making them not stand out.

Currently they drove along a path following the edge of a forest. Caleb and Cera sat on the coachbox. Alex and Violet behind on the cart. He noticed that she was grasping the long cloth bundle next to her extra tight. Inside was Violet’s staff. Alex knew why she was so tense. He was never here, but the fields and forest next to them and the path the traveled on, was very familiar to him. Alex had seen this land in his Dreams. Dreams where Violet played as a child, explored as a teenager and ran for her life as a young adult.

“Everything alright? Want something to drink?”, asked Alex cautiously.

“No, thanks. All good.”, gave Violet as a short answer.

“I spot a village in the distance, we could stay there for the night.”, suggested Cera.

Nobody disagreed and they took the path leading to the village.

“Oh no…”, said Cera suddenly after they came halfway.

“What?”, asked Caleb.

“That’s a bit much smoke, don’t you think”

Cera pointed at the thick black smoke column rising now over the village.

“You’re right…”, agreed Caleb.

“What should we do? Do we go there or…?”, asked Cera and turned around.

Violet looked at the village.

“No, we can’t just leave them… let’s at least go and check out, if we can help put it out…”, decided Violet.

“Alright then. Pick up the pace, Rudy.”, said Caleb.

Rudy grunted happily and started to run. It did not take them long to reach the village gate. But what they found inside the palisades was not what they expected. They thought there to be people scrambling around with water buckets or making a line to try and put out the fire. It was the complete opposite. The first thing they saw as they entered were two men clad in black leather armor on top of horses flinging a torch into a building. Further down the road they saw a bunch of dead men lying in the street.

“Shit…Bandits… What do we d-“, asked Cera but got interrupted by a firebolt flying over her head.

It hid one of the men on horse and made him fall headfirst to the ground. Violet had freed her staff from the cloth and pointed forwards. Another firebolt shot through the sky and hit the second rider.

“I guess we fight.”, said Cera with a shrug.

She grabbed her bow and quiver from under a blanket as well. They drove down the street and soon came to a large place in the middle of the village. On one side a group of women were bound with a few Bandits around. On the other side was still fighting going on. A big group of bandits were engaged with last of the villagers, trying to desperately defend the gate of a big house. The defenders seemed vastly outnumbered, and the bandits had two trolls hammering on the side of the house, trying to create another entrance.

“Caleb! Drive us through there!”, shouted Violet.

“What? Through the whole group?”, answered Caleb incredulously.

“Yes, and then drive around and help the women. Leave the rest of them to me and Alex.”

Violet leaned towards Alex and touched him, activating the Berserker spell.

“Well, you heard the woman, Rudy! Full speed ahead!”

Rudy grunted deep and dashed. The cart rattled loudly over the road and warned the first of the Bandits. They tried jumping out of the way, but Cera began to fire her arrows in rapid succession, hitting all of them. Rudy tore through the ranks of bandits creating a chaotic disarray. Alex jumped first and cleaved one of the bandits standing nearest through the collarbone. Violet jumped as well and ducked immediately. Alex’s axe slashed through the air above her head, as he swung widely, creating space and pushing the bandits away. Violet shot firebolts and some bigger fireballs wildly in the crowd from her lower position. Then she got up and followed Alex, continuing to cast her spells at the enemy. She had learned how much space to leave him, so that he could swing his axe freely without worrying about hitting her.

Caleb had turned the cart around and drove towards the other and smaller group on the other side of the village square. Cera continued to fire her arrows. Caleb stopped Rudy before crashing into the group with the women. He jumped down, pulled his sword and began fighting the bandits scrambling to face him. Cera shot her last three arrows, pulled her two short swords and jumped into the fray as well.

Alex and Violet in the meantime moved towards the first troll. All has been going well so far. Alex dodged the trolls club smash and rammed his axe in his gut, making the monstrosity howl in pain. Violet hurled a fireball in a group of bandits and let it explode in a big blaze of flames, leaving behind only burned remains. She prepared another spell when she suddenly paused. One of the bandits had split up from the group and was now coming towards her. Violet felt herself transported back in time to the most traumatic day in her life. For the man approaching her it was probably just a normal day of the week. Violet stared panicked into the face of one of the bandits, Eduard had let in that night. One of the men that killed her whole family. Violet’s mind went blank. She forgot all the spells she could use. She forgot all the training and experience she had gathered since then. Violet felt like her old self again. Helpless and weak. She wanted to run, but her feet just managed a few shaky steps back. Her hand unconsciously released her staff and it clattered to the ground. Violet took more steps back and fell down. Her hood slid back and revealed her red hair. The man got closer and closer. He reached her staff and just kicked it out of the way. The man did not seem to recognize her or cared not for it. He raised his sword and was nearly within reach.

Help…someone… help…, thought Violet.

It was the same thought she had back then, but like back then nobody could hear her thoughts and would rush to help. Then suddenly a recent memory flashed up and reminded her that she was not like back then anymore, that she was not alone and that someone would be here for her. Violet just had to scream his name, and he would come rushing, she was sure of it and opened her mouth.

ALEX! HELP ME!

Fear and panic still held her body and vocal cord tightly in grip, leaving her unable to make a sound. She saw the blade raised high above the man’s head, ready to strike down. Violet only managed to scream for help in her thoughts, but that was enough. Her bracelet began to glow slightly. She felt a gust of wind and the man was suddenly gone. She only saw a very familiar back in front of her. Alex had cleaved the bandit clean in two at the waist. The man still had his sword raised as his upper half slid to the side and fell down.

“And that is why you don’t take a swing with a sword…”, said Alex turning with a grin and reaching out his hand.

The fear and panic that Violet felt just a second ago was completely gone as she grasped the offered help.

“You, okay?”, asked Alex after pulling her up.

“I lost my staff.”, said Violet immediately.

“Shit, where?”

“I don’t know… that bastard kicked it somewhere.”

“Fuck… Watch out!”

Alex pulled her out of the way of a sword slash. He wanted to swing his axe as response after, but was too slow. Violet had already turned around, pulled her short sword and rammed it into the gut of the oncoming Bandit. Alex made an impressed face and swung his axe instead into the second Bandit coming after his buddy.

“Let’s look for it later… we’re nearly finished here, only one big guy and a few small ones left.”, suggested Alex and nodded to the troll left.

“I can take him!”, said Violet with fire in her eyes.

Alex looked at her in surprise.

“You will do no such thing! You already stabbed someone, perfectly I might add, but don’t overdo it! Be a good girl and stay the fuck back and let me handle it.”

“Okay, okay… I’ll be a good wife and let my dear husband do the heavy lifting. Go get ‘em, honey!”

“What th-“

“Watch out!”

Violet rushed past the bedazzled Alex and stabbed the Bandit coming for him.

“What? We are still pretending, are we not?”, asked Violet with a smug face.

“This not the time and place for that, young woman!”

Alex shook his head and then met the approaching troll halfway. Violet looked around. Most of the bandits were slain, a few were running away and the last of them attacking the gate got overwhelmed by the defenders. Violet looked across the village square and saw that Caleb and Cera finished on their end as well. She then began looking around for her staff, careful not to get too close to Alex and the troll swinging their weapons around. Violet saw a purple glowing a bit away next to a corpse. It was her staff. She went towards it. Violet was only a few meters away as suddenly a big heavy troll body came into her vision. He had an axe stuck between his eyes and on the shaft dangled Alex.

“Watch out, he’s going to fall!”, he shouted.

Alex was right and the troll fell. Violet heard a loud crack as the heavy body hit the ground in front of her.