They had been on the road for four days now and it’s been two days since they began to hug the border of the Brimgeo Forest along where the road to Bacall ran. The sun had just risen beyond the mountain ridge in the distance, causing the nearby trees to cast their long shadow over their caravan as they dismantled their bivouac and saddled their horses again - or took their considerably more comfortable place inside the coach in Eulisses’ and Felicity’s case.

“So, Baycall town is the eastern-most settlement in the Esaburg Kingdom, correct?” Eulisses asked his companion, if only to fill the silence he felt uncomfortable with, whenever he wasn’t alone. “Yes, with the Wellingnach Mountains and the Brimego Forest taking up most of our east, Baycall sits pretty much alone at the remaining arable - and buildable land of the eastern cusp. It’s also our gateway to both Arcrary and Wrachurid by sea, with the forest presenting a natural barrier on land to the former. Most of our trade with the two countries runs through the city, only the Khiphamid States run the majority of their business with us through our northern port towns. Usually, the road between our capital and Baycall is much-frequented, but ... “ “The news of the upcoming planar convergence has slowed normal trade down?” Eulisses ventured a guess. “What? No! In times like these trade flourishes, with merchants keen on capitalizing on the people’s fears and wants of stockpiling all kinds of goods. That only stops right as the convergence happens, we still have a few months before it comes to that, otherwise this venture would be pointless.”

Eulisses was at a loss. “Well, what other reason is there then? We haven’t seen a single other person while being on the road for the last days!” Felicity’s expression turned grim in response. “For a few weeks now, bandits have been plaguing this route. They take advantage of the situation, as we concentrate our forces at the various cities and towns throughout our country, preparing their defenses in case we don’t manage to hold back all enemies at the Rift and some manage to slip through.” She threw a glance out of the carriage’s window. “They use the cover of the woods to evade any smaller forces we have sent out to deal with them. It’s the reason why so many of the Royal Guard are escorting us. They shouldn’t dare to attack a convoy this heavily guarded.”

Her last sentence sparked Eulisses’ memory. That takes me back, to that oddball of an adventurer back at Mansfield. He wouldn’t shut up about flags and something with a mate called Murphy. I only ever pretended to understand whenever he was talking of these strange concepts in that head of his. But that one was one of the few I believe I got, if only because I was speaking from experience.

“Felicity, you’ve just ‘hoisted a flag’ I believe it is called.” She stared at him incredulously, brows furrowed. “What are you talking about?” “Now that you’ve said that bandits wouldn’t dare attack an armored force of this size, they definitely are going to.” She looked at him as if he was insane and wanted to retort, but was interrupted by an arrow piercing the wooden wall of their carriage. “We are under attack, formation!” someone shouted on the outside and Eulisses gave her a look that said ‘I told you’ before scurrying closer to the window, trying to see what was going on. Felicity promptly joined him, squeezing her face next to his close to the translucent but not transparent glass.

“You know princess, if another arrow bursts through the thin wood and glass separating us from the outside, I’m gonna be fine. Your face most definitely wouldn’t.” “Then open the door so we can actually see! I won’t get hit by an arrow I can percieve!”

What if there are several? Eulisses thought, but complied nonetheless. They were sitting ducks while inside the carriage anyways, with it not offering any real protection. Best if they joined the fighting or at the very least stayed back while coordinating with their bodyguards.

They opened the door and stepped outside. Their guards stood in a wedge formation around their carriage, facing the forces that ran towards them from the shadows of the woods. Men and women in rudimentary but functioning gear shot at them with bows or used spears and axes wanting to engage them in melee. The difference in level of equipment was immense when compared with the Royal Guard, but the staggering number of them more than made up for it in intimidation. Eulisses didn’t count them all, but there were at the least 50 of them, more than double their number. If they managed to break their formation, they would simply overrun them.

--

This is looking grim, our reports were speaking of way fewer of them. Felicity watched over the battle, the bandits already felled a few of their guards. We are taking losses, but so are they. Why would they keep attacking us? She turned towards Eulisses next to her. “Can you do something?” The wizard had already gathered some of his energy, but his reply was prosaic. “I could chuck a fireball or two, but their archers are too thinly spread and I would hit our own men in the melee. I need to pick them off one by one.”

He pointed his finger at a bandit that was in the process of attacking the blindside of a distracted guard. Without warning, the man fell on the ground, like a puppet whose strings had been cut. What a frightening spell, I didn’t even catch what he did to the man! Eulisses prepared to cast another spell, but he would take some time to do so. Time in which the bandits would cut down more of the Royal Guards, relentless in their attack and blind of their own losses. I need to buy him - and our guards - some time. If they won’t retreat even with their incurred losses, then I shall cut down every last one of them!

Felicity drew her rapier and made for the frontline, taking the place of another guard that had just been felled by an arrow managing to slip through the gaps in his armor. She parried the spear of an attacking bandit and retaliated with a ray of frost to his face. It didn’t deal much damage, but gave her the opening she needed as she swiftly closed the distance between them and stabbed the man through his eye, instantly killing him.

Before she could do anything else, her instincts kicked in, honed by years of training that had been brought to the surface in the last week. She rotated her body just in time to avoid the mighty downward chop of a battle axe. The Royal Guard beside her took the opening and ran his sword through the attacker, but another bandit was already thrusting his spear at her side, while she was distracted by the axeman. She turned around and saw the bladed tip closing in, knowing she wouldn’t be able to raise her own blade to parry in time. But the very next moment, the attacker was hit in the chest by a lightning bolt, the force of the impact knocking them back, where they remained unmoving, smoke emitting from their smouldering wound.

Felicity turned to her helper and saw Eulisses, one open palm pointing at her, or rather the bandit that had attacked her. He held up his other fist, with the thumb struck out, pointing at the sky. She didn’t know what the gesture meant, but took it as a sign of victory and nodded towards him thankfully.

With Felicity and Eulisses joining the fray, they finally managed to push back the attackers without incurring any more losses of their own. With them being brought down to just a dozen, and most of that number consisting of archers, the bandits finally retreated back into the woods, the thick foliage soon covering their silhouettes.

The remaining guards gathered together, counting their losses. One of them spoke up with a grim expression on his face. “We’ve lost eight men, the Lieutenant among them.” They all paused in silent tribute to the just fallen. He turned towards Felicity and Eulisses, who had taken a place at her side again. “As the former second-in-command I’m taking command of your escort now, your highness. I know that we are on a schedule, but I would like to bury our man, with your permission. We can’t leave them here or the remaining bandits would loot the corpses once we’re gone.”

Felicity knew he wanted to show their dead some respect and was about to agree to his request while putting on a mournful expression, but was interrupted by Eulisses. “If we are going to stay here for a little longer, I would want to try something. I hope you don’t hold it against me if I don’t help with digging the graves, now-in-command?” The Second Lieutenant gave him an angry look on hearing his excited voice, but Felicity now knew Eulisses well enough to know the wizard had nod intentionally slighted him or his men. It’s just that he’s so eager to try whatever has popped up in his mind, that he forgot to care about what’s appropriate to show in the given situation. “What are you trying to do, Eulisses?” she asked him. “Oh, I wanted to try, whether some of the more ... occult magics I know still work here. If they do, I might be able to move against the remaining bandits,” and, turning to the Second Lieutenant, “and take revenge for your fallen brethren, commander. If that is something you believe in, that is.”

The man’s gaze turned less confrontational. “If that’s how it is, then I’ll let you get to work, Hero Malinor. Should you manage to eradicate those bandits that got away, you would be doing a service not only to my men, but to our country as a whole. And I can’t have your highness digging the earth either, so I’d ask you to wait at the carriage or help the wizard with his spell. This is something me and my men need to do ourselves.”

Felicity nodded and began to speak fervently. “I understand, Second Lieutenant, I shall leave you to it. Know, that these men died while protecting their country and a cause that might save the whole world.”

In the meantime, Eulisses had set up a bit away and was currently cutting the wrist of a dead bandit, collecting the blood in a vial he produced out of nowhere. Felicity approached him. “What are you doing?” “The ritual I’m about to perform needs blood as a catalyst. Usually you would use the caster’s blood, but that is not an option in my case. So,” he stood up and held forth the filled vial, “I need to precure the ressource otherwise.” “And what do you need the blood for?” He gave her a crooked yet oddly charming smile. I wonder whether those teeth are his actual or if they are part of the spell he’s upholding. Felicity thought out of nowhere. “You see, Felicity, I am going to perform a little ‘hero’-summoning of my own.” And with a chuckle, he added: “Well, maybe not the ‘hero’-part.”