HerculePyro
Arson on the Orient Express
Joy smiled idly under his mask as the Barge glided down the other half of the water bridge, Anthony’s declaration that Bird laguz weren’t a threat was certainly amusing, Joy had half a mind to transform and dangle the unarmoured knight over the fissure, but gave up the idea. Things seemed to be on the rise, Anthony, the most troublesome crewmember seemed to be doing ok.
He glanced back in surprise at the sound of wings and a familiar voice. Fydoria was saluting him from atop her Pegasus.
“Oh hey, welcome back, cap sent you to give us a hand? See if you can land just behind the stables, there should be enough room,” Joy called out to her.
He turned back towards the crew, only to see Anthony with his hand inside the mouth of their excitable cat, who seemed to have been more on edge from his talk of birds than he assumed. Fortunately, Karliah who was sitting nearby was already healing Anthony, the tip of her staff glowing and look of bewilderment plastered on her face.
As the barge glided down onto the other side of the fissure Joy relaxed a little and responded to Imraes earlier comment.
“How many times do I have to tell you; this isn’t a ship. Most of the militia aren’t sailors, they’re farm folk. One person is all that’s needed to move this thing. On the way back you can rig up a sail and see how well you do using wind power to get us across the fissure, we’ll be going downstream that’ll make it easier for you,” Joy mused.
The terrain on the short-hair side was a lot different from the empire side. Instead of towering jungles it was towering grass and reeds. There were a few mangroves too, that joy made sure to skirt around. It didn’t take long for them to reach their destination, a large lake fed into by a small waterfall on the far side. Joy steered the barge up to the northern bank, where a small hitching post had been struck into the ground, he hurried up to the back and doused the furnace. Carried by its momentum the barge slide up onto the bank, Joy jumped off and quickly tied it up to the post.
“This is our stop kiddos, someone get down the gangplank and get the horses out of the stables, Anthony your armour stays off, for now, we’ll travel till nightfall then camp close, you can don your armour the next day when we go in for the attack,” Joy ordered.
He gazed out across the lake, his raven eyes spotting the barely visible gleam of a watching pair of eyes across the water before they ducked back out of sight into the chest head-high grass. He turned back towards the group.
“We shouldn’t do this, you know what happens to them,” The scruffy man said, speaking quietly so that the rest of the forces overheard.
“Relax Mccoy, do you know how much one of them is worth? One job and we make enough to get by for years, you’re the one who doesn’t like to raid. We could become honest sumbags with this,” the woman said in a cool voice. Planting a light kiss on Mccoy's cheek, she walked out of view of the girl in the cage.
“Honest? What part of this is honest? We should just let her go! No, take her back to her home, they might reward us, it’d be a win-win!” Mccoy pleaded.
“No Mccoy. I understand where you’re coming from but I’ve made my decision. People don’t just go into those mountains if we let her go; we get nothing,” The tall man said, his back to the girl.
"We’ve been struggling to get by for the last three months, we’ve lost two already to hunger, three more to the savages. I was prepared to turn myself in, hand myself over to the princes torturers if it meant I would get to eat a cold meal every day,” he turned, his cold gaze fixed on the girl as he slowly strode over to her, hands behind his back. Reaching the cage he crouched down, locking eyes with the girl in the cage.
“And now, this blessing has landed on our doorstep and I see food, I see survival. The goddess Cynthia has blessed us with one of her children and I am not about to let her go. I’m sorry Mccoy, tomorrow we make for the rendezvous. Now go make sure everyone is prepared,” He ordered his eyes unwavering in their intent.
The girl heard Mccoy's footsteps as he followed the woman down the stone steps.
“I’m sorry girl. Though now that I think on it, girl may not be fitting for one as long-lived as yourself. You won’t die, you may outlive me still, but I’m afraid your life to come won’t be a happy one. For that you have my apology, were my bands situation different things would not have come to this,” the leader of the brigands said. He spoke sincerely, the girl recognised genuine sorrow in his voice that seeped through his cold exterior.
The leader stood, looking down at her, his cold demeanour returning.
“I would offer you one last meal but we cannot expend the food at the moment, sweet dreams girl, we’ll be travelling in the morning,” With that, the tall man turned and left the girls view.
He glanced back in surprise at the sound of wings and a familiar voice. Fydoria was saluting him from atop her Pegasus.
“Oh hey, welcome back, cap sent you to give us a hand? See if you can land just behind the stables, there should be enough room,” Joy called out to her.
He turned back towards the crew, only to see Anthony with his hand inside the mouth of their excitable cat, who seemed to have been more on edge from his talk of birds than he assumed. Fortunately, Karliah who was sitting nearby was already healing Anthony, the tip of her staff glowing and look of bewilderment plastered on her face.
As the barge glided down onto the other side of the fissure Joy relaxed a little and responded to Imraes earlier comment.
“How many times do I have to tell you; this isn’t a ship. Most of the militia aren’t sailors, they’re farm folk. One person is all that’s needed to move this thing. On the way back you can rig up a sail and see how well you do using wind power to get us across the fissure, we’ll be going downstream that’ll make it easier for you,” Joy mused.
The terrain on the short-hair side was a lot different from the empire side. Instead of towering jungles it was towering grass and reeds. There were a few mangroves too, that joy made sure to skirt around. It didn’t take long for them to reach their destination, a large lake fed into by a small waterfall on the far side. Joy steered the barge up to the northern bank, where a small hitching post had been struck into the ground, he hurried up to the back and doused the furnace. Carried by its momentum the barge slide up onto the bank, Joy jumped off and quickly tied it up to the post.
“This is our stop kiddos, someone get down the gangplank and get the horses out of the stables, Anthony your armour stays off, for now, we’ll travel till nightfall then camp close, you can don your armour the next day when we go in for the attack,” Joy ordered.
He gazed out across the lake, his raven eyes spotting the barely visible gleam of a watching pair of eyes across the water before they ducked back out of sight into the chest head-high grass. He turned back towards the group.
~Meanwhile at the Militias destination~
A girl sat huddled in a steel cage, staring intently at her captors as they spoke.
“We shouldn’t do this, you know what happens to them,” The scruffy man said, speaking quietly so that the rest of the forces overheard.
“Relax Mccoy, do you know how much one of them is worth? One job and we make enough to get by for years, you’re the one who doesn’t like to raid. We could become honest sumbags with this,” the woman said in a cool voice. Planting a light kiss on Mccoy's cheek, she walked out of view of the girl in the cage.
“Honest? What part of this is honest? We should just let her go! No, take her back to her home, they might reward us, it’d be a win-win!” Mccoy pleaded.
“No Mccoy. I understand where you’re coming from but I’ve made my decision. People don’t just go into those mountains if we let her go; we get nothing,” The tall man said, his back to the girl.
"We’ve been struggling to get by for the last three months, we’ve lost two already to hunger, three more to the savages. I was prepared to turn myself in, hand myself over to the princes torturers if it meant I would get to eat a cold meal every day,” he turned, his cold gaze fixed on the girl as he slowly strode over to her, hands behind his back. Reaching the cage he crouched down, locking eyes with the girl in the cage.
“And now, this blessing has landed on our doorstep and I see food, I see survival. The goddess Cynthia has blessed us with one of her children and I am not about to let her go. I’m sorry Mccoy, tomorrow we make for the rendezvous. Now go make sure everyone is prepared,” He ordered his eyes unwavering in their intent.
The girl heard Mccoy's footsteps as he followed the woman down the stone steps.
“I’m sorry girl. Though now that I think on it, girl may not be fitting for one as long-lived as yourself. You won’t die, you may outlive me still, but I’m afraid your life to come won’t be a happy one. For that you have my apology, were my bands situation different things would not have come to this,” the leader of the brigands said. He spoke sincerely, the girl recognised genuine sorrow in his voice that seeped through his cold exterior.
The leader stood, looking down at her, his cold demeanour returning.
“I would offer you one last meal but we cannot expend the food at the moment, sweet dreams girl, we’ll be travelling in the morning,” With that, the tall man turned and left the girls view.