[coronatiger]

Thoughts on August 7th

A shout of alarm woke everyone in the middle of the night. I hurried to string my bow and was picking up the quiver when Olivia declared that she wouldn’t let me out of the room without any clothes on. I didn’t hear any more shouting, or any sounds of combat, so I got dressed, and then Olivia helped me put on my new leather armor. It’s a bit heavy, so I left off the bracers and leggings, preferring mobility over protection.

The two guards who had been in the garden had came inside; they’d been struck by a crossbow bolt each. Kine, perched on the roof of the one-story building, had also been shot at, but she’d been able to hide behind the ridge, so she hadn’t been hit. She had jumped down to the alley behind the house and brought the guards there inside as well. Olivia got out her first aid kit and started applying bandages to the wounded guards, while I joined Va’lyndra in the office.

For safety, all the window shutters had been locked, so the bandits had to break their way inside. Two of the three office windows were the first ones to be attacked, and Va’lyndra and I waited patiently with arrows pointed at the windows. We soon saw a blade penetrate the shutters, and when she spotted an eye-ball looking in, Va’lyndra released her arrow at the tiny crack. The arrow didn’t pass entirely through the heavy wooden shutter, but we heard a yelp of pain from the outside, and the attacks on the windows ceased. I would have shot as well, but my reaction was slow enough that the person outside would have had ample time to get out of the way.

After a few seconds of silence, I suggested we open the window and see if we could spot any hostiles outside. There were none in the garden, but someone was standing behind the fence, pointing a crossbow at us. I fired as fast as I could, and the assassin dropped to the ground to avoid being struck. We saw no more movement on the garden side of the house, and opened the third office window. There was nobody in the alley, but we soon heard attacks being made on the windows of the living room and kitchen on the other side of the house, so we closed the shutters again and went there; Va’lyndra went to the living room, and I to the kitchen.

The assailants shattered the shutters, but when Va’lyndra and I started shooting, they found the alley outside to be uninhabitable, so they slunk away again. After a while of silence, I suggested to Lady Karita, who had taken charge of the defenses, that I could go out the kitchen window and take a look from the neighboring roof. Depending on what I saw, I could run for help or shoot at the enemies from behind. If the situation outside became untenable, I figured I could dive back in through a kitchen or living room window. I got permission to go.

I took a running start through the kitchen, used the window sill for a stepping stone, and jumped up to the adjacent roof. Two bandits were lying there, watching the living room windows from above. One of them had a crossbow and a long knife, the other one wore a breastplate and wielded an axe. I guessed the latter was the most dangerous one close up, and punched him in the face before he could stand up. The other guy fired at me, and I barely got out of the way; I had to pull an acrobatic stunt to dodge the bolt. Unarmed, the only advantage I had was that I was fighting two people who were trying to get to their feet to engage me face-to-face. Fortunately, I was strong enough that a hit to the face knocked them down, so I didn’t have to fight two standing opponents at the same time.

One of my opponents shouted that we were coming out the windows on this side, summoning their accomplices. I yelled for Va’lyndra to shoot if she got the chance. I managed on my own, however, as neither of my opponents could handle more than two or three brass-knuckled punches. The knife-fighter nearly got me, though, and in the heat of the battle, I forgot I still was nursing an injury from the fight with the kidnappers a couple of nights ago. A single, good hit could have dropped me.

Two more bandits came from the alley behind the house and tried to climb up. Va’lyndra dropped one, and the other thought the better of it when I pointed an arrow at him and demanded his surrender. He tried to get away from me to join the melee in the kitchen. I shot him, but he staggered onward. Needing time to reload, I had to let him go.

In the kitchen, the guards at first looked to be evenly matched with the intruders. Kine had been hit by a crossbow bolt when the enemies first entered, and was reluctant to go in, and Lady Karita stayed back to guard her relatives while Olivia hid in a nearby closet. Va’lyndra had been busy watching the alleys.

Then two of the bandits in the kitchen went down, and things were looking up. Unfortunately, the intruders included a fire mage and a highly trained assassin, and the guards soon were in serious trouble. Not wanting to be surrounded, the two remaining enemies fought with their backs against the wall towards the alley. That, however, forced one of them to stand at the window, and when the assassin dropped to the floor, an arrow protruding from his stomach at a downward angle, Va’lyndra and the remaining guards made short work of the mage.

Lady Karita took control of the situation: Kine and the wounded guards were sent to the living room to be cared for by Olivia; the single uninjured one was dispatched to alert the governor; the fire in the kitchen was doused and the charred remains of the dead guard were covered with a blanket; the prisoners were stripped of arms and armor and stowed in the kitchen; Va’lyndra and I watched them until the governor’s men came and took them away.

Kine had fallen unconscious, and after a brief examination, Lady Karita told us the crossbow bolt that had hit Kine had reacquainted her with belladonna. Olivia watched over her patient with a supply of healing potions to be administered at her discretion. The dose of poison Kine received today must have been stronger than the one she got earlier, for it took quite some time before she was stable. Olivia sent me off to bed alone.

In the morning, Lady Karita and Va’lyndra went to the adventurers’ guild to procure more healing potions and to look for interesting quests on the board. They found one; we’ll be leaving the day after tomorrow to explore some buildings in a city in the lower levels of the caves. Lady Karita also learned that the governor has started taking a tax on wealth brought out of the mines.

Back at Lord Karl’s house, Va’lyndra commented upon Lady Karita’s constant orders to Kine, and asked her if she actually was Lady Karita’s slave. Kine gave her an emphatic no, but I nodded a discrete yes. Now that Va’lyndra has joined our crew, I figured she deserves to know. Both Lady Karita, Kine and Olivia claim that Kine isn’t really a slave, and that we just have to pretend she is, but I know the truth.

When the others started talking about money and stuff, Olivia and I went swimming again. She’s improving, and says she’ll soon be comfortable swimming without me supporting her. She isn’t as quick to learn as I was. She doesn’t have the same endurance for lengthy training sessions as I do, but I suspect the main reason may be that while my teacher used both arms to support me, I only use one, leaving the other one free to steady Olivia’s chest when she dips forward. As I am loath to let go after grabbing her, she has to employ various methods to get out of my grip. While pleasant, the frequent distractions are time-consuming. There’s no rush for Olivia to learn swimming, though, so she doesn’t mind. She knew what she was getting into, placing herself in my hands. It’s good we’ve found a secluded pond where we can practice, as clothes are terribly cumbersome when one swims.

In the evening, Va’lyndra and I went to the fletcher to get masterwork arrows. He said he could only make ten before we left, so I let Va’lyndra make the order. I still have seventeen masterwork arrows from my last purchase; they don’t break as easily as regular arrows.

Lord Karl said he thought this was a last, desperate attempt to get him before he could uncover the crimes behind the mineral export monopoly. Lady Karita declared Lord Karl and his family to be safe, so we moved back to the Red Mansion. Olivia and I got the small room in the attic again, where we can be as noisy as we please.