Mechant Trade, A Merchant's plea.

[Drayco]

The hours of travel were quick in passing but seemed to drag at the same moment. The group of mercenaries had stayed close together. One of them had held in his hands a heavy poleaxes. The man holding it was a longhaired man. He was thin and it looked out of place that his weapon was a heavy one. The woman had her arms folded in front of her. She looked distant compared to the rest of her team. They all seemed to be from the same band because of the way they interacted and how they talked to each other. Drayco couldn't be fully sure though.

Drayco stared at the multiple boxes that were on the crates. He wondered what was inside them. He doubted that it was really ballista and catapult equipment. But he also knew that he would have to trust his friend. Marco had been there for him when he needed him. It was the knight’s turn to do that same.

"Raiders..." The woman whispered. The knight heard the comment and glanced around quickly. He then looked at the sword that was sheathed against the horse. "Following us. They are staying a short ways, no archers but mostly spear men." Drayco wasn't sure how the woman knew. He couldn't help but imagine the hundreds of ways she could have learned of the raiders. The most nagging was that she was one of them.

Drayco shifted inside the cloak. He was nervous. It was a surprise attack that any raider would want. But something about this one felt wrong. He knew it was more then just an ordinary raider party trailing them. He could feel it in his mind and heart. The pendant around his neck seemed to tighten.

Silence ruled as noon came. There was little Drayco could do to combat it. He was trying to keep his mind in tune with his steed, in case attack came quickly. He could see the axe carrying man twisting the axe. Nervous...wonder why... Drayco thought coldly. But there was more then just the axe man that who seemed nervous. There was a big man near him, in armor made mostly of leathers and few metals. He carried a bow as big as him, which was about six feet high. Drayco could see the same hint of nervousness between everyone but the woman. She looked calm and collected.

Something is wrong with this. Drayco thought as he reached for his sword. Something was going on and the knight could feel it.

[Drayco]

The attack was sudden and came with force. The man with the axe men spun around. The head of the axe tore into one of his partners. It parted the unsuspecting person, who only had a chance to gasp and then fall dead. One of the other men drew a long thin blade, and swept it upwards. It caught the woman leader in the chest, but her armor kept the wound from a fatal one. The others that had not died in the assault by the two had turned on the knight and the woman. Blades, axes and lances at ready.

But so was the mounted knight. His Gladius tore from its sheath. He charged forward and the horse lowered just a small ways. The tip of the Gladius ripped into a one of the soldiers that had come with multiple swords, but was wielding a hand axe. The Gladius blade, heavy and swift, lifted the man into the air. His body fell lifeless to the ground near one of the remaining three. The woman showed the same surprise at the assault as the knight. But her weapon was swift as the knights. Her axe which was large bladed and long shafted crushed into the man with the thin blade. His body tore at the arm, which fell to the ground, still holding the sword. Her next swing parted him diagonally at the chest.

The next assault came not from the two men that remained, but from behind. Arrows fell, many striking the cart, and a few hitting dirt. None hit the fighters. Drayco was already wheeling his horse around. The Gladius was sheathed and in his cloak as his broadsword came out. He would take the man with the poleaxe because he could keep the woman at range and could dismount him.

Drayco charged forward, body and blade lowered. His arm was out to the side a bit, the blade pointing to the ground. It came up quickly as he passed the man with the poleaxe. The attack fell quickly because of the deep wound on his back. But he'd never seen the other man fall, but his body was on the ground, head nearly ten feet away from it. "On the cart!" He yelled at the woman. She nodded and climbed on the cart. The man who drove the cart snapped the lines a few times, rushing them off.

The knight was left in a cloud of dust. He could see some of the attackers topping a rise, he saw five, and all with bows in hand. "This shall be interesting." Drayco chuckled. He lowered himself so his shield covered him. "But, they are five and we are two...two strong as ten!" With that the horse bolted foreword, both ready for the coming fight.

[Drayco]

Arrows bounced off his shield as he hunched over the horse. None of the archers drew a good bead on him as he charged forward. His sword was against the side of the horse, somewhat hidden by his body. He couldn't help but grin. He'd become much stronger on his horse, and the loyalty of the animal seemed to change as well. When Drayco was a few meters from the group, the dropped their bows, save one. He readied another arrow, but was to late.

The horse darted past the man, and the knight extended and swung his sword. The blade sliced into the man's chest, but the swinging motion launched the man, spinning and falling lifeless to the ground. Drayco wheeled the horse around and the horse reared up. The knight was grinning, near evil when his horse came against the ground again. He swung his sword, a hard swing that flat sided one of the raider bandits. The man fell to the ground, not dead but unconscious.

A dagger ripped through the air. It took the knight in the arm just as another took one of the raiders. The last standing raider fell a moment later. A cloaked man, whose skin was completely covered by the black cloak, appeared. He moved forward, silent against the ground with the same stealth that would be expected from the reaper or death incarnate. His hand appeared and snaked around the neck of the man, then jerked away.

The raider gasped and choked for air. His neck hadn't been broken but throat had been slit. He feels lifeless a moment later. Drayco looked at the last raider, then where the cloaked figure had been. No one was there. The knight kept sword at ready, in case the figure appeared again.

Drayco dismounted quickly, putting the unconscious raider onto the back of Jotay. He was quick with his work, and didn't hide the fact that he was scared. His arm was screaming pain from the dagger and the knight wondered if there had been any kind of poison on the blade. When he got back to the port he would have a healer check him. "You're very lucky I just flat sided you...or you'd be dead along with your comrades." Drayco whispered as he mounted the horse.

With a kick Jotay began to gallop, towards where the cart had departed. He was worried now, but he would have to wait and see. "Run faster Jotay...run faster..." he whispered. He wanted to know what had become of the woman and weapons, but his gut had a sinking feeling.

[Drayco]

It was fifteen minutes later when he came across the cart. The boxes and heavy wood of the cart were torn and shredded. Drayco looked in fear as he saw the driver, his body twisted and mangled. There was no blood on the man's body. The kill was clean and the eyes were still reflecting horror. He looked around and saw that the woman's body was not nearby. He kept his sword ready as Jotay sagged a bit. His arm was numbed now, but blood still ran down, thin streams that trickled off his fingers.

"You're alive!" Drayco heard. It was a woman's voice, a whisper and slightly harsh. "Come, we must go. Quickly as that horse can move. Before that...that...monster...returns." Drayco looked at the bandit. Should this man pay for his crimes with his life...or...should..." The knight sighed. It was a choice he couldn't make, it wasn't his life nor was it his to bargain with. Drayco looked around, he needed another option. Then he saw the choice and the option.

The horse that was tethered to the cart was still alive; it was clean and was unafraid looking. "The horse...mount up and ride. We go back to port, and drop your weapon." The woman looked at Drayco with a puzzled look. "If that thing shows up again...your axe...or my blades...won't be of much help I suspect." The woman warrior nodded and dropped her axe. He wondered if it was a family treasure, but didn't let his mind dwell on it for more then a moment. "Come, quickly." The woman was mounted in a few minutes and after that they rode.

Drayco was surprised how hard he could push his steed, but not that his steed would let himself be pushed. They traveled swift, taking what was hours before and turning it to mere minutes that stretched. Drayco knew his horse would tire soon, and was afraid of that fact. He knew the city would be relative safety, but he also knew to achieve that safety then he would need the walls around him.

"Jotay...I hate to push you this hard...but run dear friend...Run!" Drayco whispered. In replied the horse pounded his hooves on the ground harder and faster. "Thank you." The knight whispered.

[Drayco]

Jotay nearly collapsed as Drayco and the woman warrior, who he'd come to known as Dea, passed through the gates. "I'll meet you at the Relic Dream in an hour. And please make sure my horse gets to the stable master and that the prisoner gets delivered," the knight heard no protest from the woman and gave a weak smile. His time on the continent had been short and sweet, save for the emergence of the black-cloaked man.

Drayco made his way back to the inn at which he'd stayed and payed quickly for a room. He wouldn't stay more then the time it took to wash up and then he would go find Marco to deliver the news.

After scrubbing up and washing his clothes, which took him ten minutes, he left the in. His skin, red and sore from the scrubbing it had received, was hidden beneath the long sleeved blue tunic and midnight blue cloak. His heavy broadsword and Gladius hung at his waist, both scrubbed as well. The only missing piece of equipment was his shield, which he'd left in his room. Drayco had no more time to waste if he was to meet Dea on time. But the streets, packed with merchants and shoppers kept him from getting to Marco's in a timely manner.

Marco's house was small, something that didn't fully befit a man that had the amount of money he had. But the gate and the guards outside, many Drayco saw, dressed in street clothes and the style of merchants, and manned the carts and shops outside. Drayco neared the gate, as stir seemed to rush over the people. He imagined the sound of weapons scrapping leather and getting ready to strike him down. But before any harm could come to him the heavy gates around the little house opened. Not more then a meter beyond them was Marco, his face tired and a grim look masking his features.

"There's no need to tell me the delivery was a failure. I was already visited by the woman...Dea her name?" Drayco nodded at Marco. He wasn't fully surprised that the woman had come before him. He expected something of the sort. "I'm not disappointed in the delivery...and I will still pay you a handsome amount. You can retrieve it at the Relic's Dream. Now please, leave me be dear friend. I'll need some time to think over things. And please, keep the letters and notes coming." Marco said in passing.

Something about his attitude made the knight want to deliver a hefty blow to the man's jaw. But he bit back the action. Marco had saved his life a time before and Drayco still felt he owed the man for it. There was nothing he could do as the gates closed behind him. The merchant had vanished into the home and the knight was headed for the pub.
***

When he entered the Relic's Dream was seating only one person. Dea. She had cleaned up rather nicely and was wearing a light green and silver lined dress. Drayco gave a smile in spite of himself. He was still wearing his cloak and weapons. He grinned as the woman set a dagger on the table, which had been retrieved from under the table.

"Here's to the nights..." Drayco whispered to the bartender with a hidden grin. "Make a tab and..." the knight chortled a bit, "ready a pitcher and platter." With the knight sat down across from the woman.

<The End>

[Derhlith]

Drayco + 2 Lvls, 400 Gold
Alkioth + 600 Gold
Kahlan + 400 Gold