The ride felt like an eternity, as the night was getting darker and darker all the time and they couldn't ride as fast as they would have wanted. Long, old branches were rising up above their heads, throwing a faint shadow as they were blocking the moonlight.
All of the soldiers seemed stressed, but only one of them complained.
"I know we're trying to stay hidden, but could you please cast a light spell for us? I want to see where I'm riding?"
The same soldier had been complaining for a while, but maybe he had a point. They could move faster with more light and it would be unlikely for anyone to attack a small group of soldiers in the middle of the night.
But it had been unlikely that someone would have attacked Sigmund either. But every second they lose was taking Sigmund closer to death. A calm pace would just make sure their quest goes in vain.
Eve made a gesture with her hands and a small ball of light appeared. It was radiating pure, white light and even though it was bright to look at, it wasn't too bright. Just bright enough.
She could see how all the soldiers brightened up, some gave even a small smile while looking at the bright light hovering in middle of them. Quickly the ball flew downwards and started to float a little bit above the ground, just in front of the group.
"Now we still won't be seen a mile away"
The bushes and other vegetation were giving a cover to the light. Anyone to spot the light would have needed to be either above them or on the same road as they were on.
The group were able to ride faster, but the road still felt long.
"We're here!"
Suddenly they ended up on a clearing. At first it was impossible to see anything in the dark. Eve let the light float around on the ground when the light revealed broken arrows, bloodstains and other marks of battle. Eve shuddered, but the soldiers didn't react. They had already been here before. Two of them jumped down from their hoses and led others towards the other side, towards the woods.
"That's where they came from", one of the soldiers pointed to the woods with his finger.
"I can see small trails behind the bushes. I think we can still take our horses with us."
They climbed back on the horses and confidently continued their the ride through bushes and trees. Eve and the rest followed behind them. The forest was much thicker at these parts and the sky wasn't visible anymore. Without any light from the moon, Eve conjured another ball of light. It wasn't enough to calm the men and horses, as everyone seemed cautious.
The darkness just continued. The wilderness around the town were large. You couldn't say that nobody lived there, but no permanent civilization had formed. There were people living around in solitude, small communities hidden and nomad groups going through the woods. Occasionally one could meet a group of bandits, but as the town was too well protected, bandits usually ended up moving somewhere else after harassing anyone they can find in the woods.
Nobody could find success in the wilderness and people rather tried to get in any larger town. The only ones who could survive had to be strong enough to protect themselves against all the dangers in the woods.
Animals, raiders and monsters.
Suddenly the group saw some lights in the distance. Fires from a camp. They stopped the horses and could hear loud talking and even some singing in the distance. As the group rode closer, they could see a group of bandits camped. The camp was built in old looking ruins. Not as old as the ones in the town, but.. more primitive. It looked the ruins were built soon after the catastrophe, but still it had already fallen in ruin. It was built from large stones with fine enough craftsmanship, with the lacking tools which people had those days.
They could now see a part of the bandit group. At least fifteen to over twenty men who were well armed, eating and drinking close to the fires. There were far more bandits, as there were only Eve and five soldiers. Even if they would manage to surprise them, they would likely lose, just as Sigmund had lost even though he had more men.
"Everyone, please wait and be prepared to help me if needed."
None of the soldiers replied, but when Eve rode in the camp, the soldiers came a bit closer. Just enough to be seen in the warm light from the fires.
"I'm sorry to disturb your feast", Eve shouted on her horse, surprising the bandits.
"But I'll need to find the one who cursed my groom!"
Two seconds of silence and then one of the bandits started to laugh.
"Nice to see you again girl, even though without you I could see much better!"
A tall bandit with dirty hair and dirty beard stood up. The man was somewhat old, but it was hard to determine his age. He wore an eyepatch and had a long, scarred wound on his face next to his eye. Eve had seen him before, years ago as a child.
"You're lucky I didn't aim any better. I can still shoot the other eye off too if you won't help me."
"Cocky brat. Even though you shot me, I'm not bitter for that. I've gotten my revenge already"
The man spit in the ground. Eve could see he had a special item on his belt, which was a red crystal vial with runes and symbols around the vial. The symbols looked similar to the cursed mark Sigmund had.
"I will not help you save your groom."
"What has Sigmund ever done to you? You have no reason to take your vengeance on him. You attacked us when we were children and I was the one who shot you!"
The man had a deep sigh with a sad look on his face.
"My feud goes on longer than you have ever lived, girl. I used to live in the same town you did, as a mechanic. That's why I had the machine that let me past your praised shield. However I got in a fight with Sigmunds father who then threw us out from the town. Me and my family."
"I'm the only one left. First our son died, then my wife. This is why I'm doing this and I won't help the boy. Not without another way to get my vengeance."
Eve had to make a quick evaluation on he situation. She could try to kill him and attack the bandits with help of the soldiers, but.. even if they won, would that help in any way? Even if the crystal vial would be the key to save Sigmund, would she know how to use it?
She had to make the decision.
Eve pulled down her hand and grabbed her gun in the holster. She lifted the gun up before anyone could react and threw the gun at the bandit leader.
"If only killing someone gives you your vengeance, please kill me instead. Then please save Sigmund, he's just as innocent as I am."
The bandit leader picked up the gun and had a really wide grin.
"Poor girl is in love. I'm sorry girl, your blood won't do. Neither am I able to help him."
He threw the gun back to her.
"I can't stand in the way of love. I'm sorry girl, but this vial I have only contained the demon which is now inside your beloved Sigmund. The only way to get the demon out from him is hidden in the ruins below. Just trap the back inside this."
Then the man threw the crystal vial to Eve, who grabbed it from the air.
"You will find no hope down there. You have less than a day to save him before he dies."
The bandit leader had an expression filled with regret and sorrow. Eve could see he had lived a life of misfortune and it had taken it's toll. Lucky for her, he wasn't evil. Eve climbed off her horse and walked towards the staircase descending down in the dark ruins. She could hear the soldiers were coming behind her, but she didn't even use the time to look back.
She knew this would be her final challenge.
Previous parts:
Part one
Part two
Part three
All images are from Pixabay!