Warning for the sensitive readers: there be blood and murder in this post
@Eldrith
Bandit Brothers - Ben and Billy (NPCs)
The bandit's cries of pain mostly came from Billy as he tried to find some sort of position that was comfortable, while Ben, with his broken ribs, tried to keep pressure on the other's arm. The latter sent a few dark, accusing glances toward the girl and the man while they were still there, but for the most part, he was too busy trying to find the least painful position.
Eventually, the clearing grew quiet and dark as the two bandits were left to themselves, at last. Quiet, except for their talk, and dark, except for the moonlight. Fortunately for them, the moon had come out from behind a cloud, so that the one tending to the other was able to at least halfway see what he was doing. They were brothers, else the one would have long since abandoned the other and let him find his own way out of the trap. Just like their friend had done.
"If Vance hadn't run off, we coulda used his help right about now," Ben grumbled.
“Maybe he went for help,” Billy suggested, though a bit skeptical.
Ben scoffed. “Yeah, sure. Just keep on believing that.” He rolled his eyes. “You know Vance as well as I do. He ran to save his own skin, not to get us any help.”
“Yeah… I guess you’re right.” Billy acknowledged, wincing as he again tried to shift his weight to a more comfortable position. But there were none. His left knee was busted, so he couldn't rest on it, and the ankle of the right leg was trapped down in the ground. If he tried to pull it out, he’d get sharp spikes digging into his leg, and if he rested his weight on his other leg, his knee was in terrible pain. He was extremely anxious to get out of the trap.
First, though, his brother’s main concern had been to try and stop the bleeding from that gash on his wrist. Ben was no healer, but he did the best he could, with what he had. Which was… really, nothing. He had torn off a strip from Billy's shirt to wrap around the wound, trying to make a crude bandage for his arm, but it wasn’t enough.
While the girl and the old man had been there, talking as if the two of them weren't still there, Ben had occasionally cast dark, glaring looks toward her for doing this to him and his brother, but he didn’t dare make any more trouble. His ribs were aching, and made for an excellent reminder why he should not antagonize that girl again. And the bodies of the other members of their group still lay over there by the fire, proof of why he should not bother the man.
But now, they were gone. And Ben really needed to get something more to bind Billy’s wrist with. “I’m gonna go see if the others had anything useful in their packs,” He informed his brother, nodding toward their deceased comrades, whose bodies lay where the campfire had been. The guy had already taken Jered's sword, but he hadn't seen either of them take anything more. “Just keep pressure on that until I get back.” He instructed, getting up slowly and carefully, wincing as his ribs protested. He hadn’t even begun to worry too much about getting Billy's foot out of that hole, since he felt it was more important to get the bleeding stopped first. Because it wouldn't do much good to get him out of the trap if he died from blood loss soon after, right? Plus, he hadn't yet figured out how he was going to do that, but one thing at a time.
Ben got up and headed for the overhang, where their fallen comrades still lay. He only had a short distance to cross, but he hadn't even gone ten steps when suddenly, his foot was yanked out from under him as he stepped in the wrong place. Before he knew it, he was hanging upside down with a yelp of pain, his ribs aching from the abrupt inversion. He swung from a rope snare he hadn’t realized was there, with his fingertips just brushing the ground. He instinctively tried to bend himself up to get at the rope holding his ankle, but his ribs sharply reminded him that they were broken, and with another cry of pain, he swiftly let himself drop back down to a hanging position, cringing as he wrapped his arms around his middle to try and stop his ribs from hurting.
“Ben?! What happened?” Billy stared in shock as he watched this happen, helpless to go to his aid. “You gotta get down from there!”
“Ohhhh,” Ben groaned, shaking his head. “I can’t… can’t reach.. oww, my ribs,” He mumbled, moaning.
This was really bad! Now who would help them? Billy was stuck here, and now Ben was stuck over there. Neither of them could help the other. They both knew their comrades weren’t coming back for them... they were sure of that. And now, they both began to worry a bit more about wolves, and other predatory creatures that roamed the woods. What if any of those came along? What would they do? Billy was already feeling quite weakened from the loss of blood, and the night would only get colder. He muttered curses toward that girl, for leaving them here like this. For injuring them in the first place. For making traps and just leaving them.. after all, who does that? And toward the man, for not even bothering to help them when he left.
Neither of them seemed to recall that they were in this situation because they had intended to attack and kill what they had believed to be a helpless victim, and because they had persisted in attacking the girl because they simply couldn’t believe that a girl could actually manage what she’d managed. That they had brought this on themselves was not a concept they were willing to admit to, nor even entertain the thought of.
The hours dragged on, painfully slow for both brothers. Ben tried to keep Billy talking, to keep him from slipping into unconsciousness. And to keep himself from it, too. Hanging upside down in the cold night air was not enjoyable at all. The night gradually faded into dawn. Slowly, the dawn gave way to morning, and as the morning light filtered through the trees, it revealed that they had managed to survive the night, despite their incredibly vulnerable predicament. But they knew that if no help arrived for them, they would surely not last another night, and maybe not even the rest of this day. Things were definitely not looking good for them…
And then, they heard a horse approaching, though it was still a little way off. They couldn’t see it, but they could hear it. The hooves on the ground, then a snort from the horse, and the chiding voice of a rider, nearby. Lifting his head slightly in hope, Ben began calling out, trying to get the rider’s attention, hoping some help may have come for them at last. Billy stirred, having been on the verge of drifting off into unconsciousness, and began to weakly add his own voice to the cries for help, hoping they were about to have an extraordinary amount of luck and be saved...
Ademar Androllius / "Amardir Ansellidus"
Late September, 4th age, year 1
Somewhere along the river Morthond, nearing the White Mountains
Mar did not expect to come across anyone so soon. He’d left the joust with all haste the moment he was able to slip away from the Dimaethor event, having made some excuse about wanting to be sure his wife was alright. He had intended on staying for the full thing, but then he’d returned to find his room at the inn trashed, and had found that
note. And there was no question about who had left it. The only thing that puzzled him, was
why she was contacting him? After all this time of
him trying to locate
her, trying to find ways to lure her out of hiding… suddenly, she
invites him to come after her? He wasn’t stupid; he knew she must have some reason for this. She was up to something. The thief was playing some sort of game with him, and he didn’t know what she had in mind, but he also couldn’t pass up an opportunity to actually find her at last. Maybe she thought she was in control here, but he was going to find some sort of flaw in her little gameplan, and then he would use that against her.
But he had been delayed in leaving, because he had to ensure that his other plans were properly in motion, first. If things went as planned, and luck was in his favor, then Trevadir would now be back with Dev. And Trev would soon die a very… slow and unpleasant death, and maybe the little brother, too. Just what Mar had always wished upon his enemy. He didn't care what happened the Dimaethor girl, nor even her brother. But he did assume that the latter, once delivered to Keket, would suffer tremendously. So many things to look forward to.
For now, however, Mar was off on his own adventure. He had to find that girl and get back what she had stolen from him. He'd traveled as swiftly as he could, trying to pick up her trail, which had led him to this area. But then, he heard voices. Calling for help. Male voices. That was unexpected. He pulled his horse up to a stop and listened, tilting his head in curiosity. Strange... what was this about? Intrigued, the young man turned his horse toward the sound and urged her onward, following the source of the calls.
Entering a small clearing, Mar took in the very strange view. One man was hanging upside down with his foot caught in a loop… very much like another trap Mar had seen recently. He felt amused to recall coming across young Toby Thormaetha, dangling from one leg, just like that, only a few months ago. But this guy was a stranger to Mar. Next, there was another guy who appeared somewhat crumpled on the ground, pale and barely conscious. His leg was half-buried in the ground, and his right wrist had clearly been bleeding profusely, even through the pathetic attempts at bandaging it. Mar’s gaze swept the rest of the scene, observing two more dead men up by the rock overhang, which bore the evidence of a campfire. It appeared that they had been slain by a weapon, though he would have to investigate more fully to know more.
“Hey.. help us,” The upside-down guy called to him, the moment he saw Mar. “Come on, let me down, will you? My brother’s about to bleed to death, and I haven’t been able to get to him for hours.” He pleaded.
Ignoring him for the moment, Mar let his gaze scan the scene carefully before turning it to the man who had spoken. Slowly, he dismounted and led his large, white horse over to a nearby tree, where he secured her reins to ensure she didn’t wander off. Then he turned back to the men. “What happened here?” He inquired, approaching the upside-down guy.
“What does it matter, man? Just let me down,” He begged. “I’ve been hanging here all night, and my ribs are broken, and I think my foot’s got the circulation cut off… and my brother needs help too, can't you see that?”
Mar looked at him for a long moment, not very impressed with his attitude and lack of cooperation. He turned instead to the other guy. “Maybe you’ll be more forthcoming?” He suggested, kneeling near him.
Billy was resting back on his elbows, trying not to pass out from blood loss. “We.. uh, we was camping here for the night,” He began faintly, figuring it might not seem too favorable to admit to the fact that they had attacked someone who had then fought back. “Us, and three of our friends." He added. "And, uh, then these people just came out of nowhere while we was asleep, and attacked us!”
Mar raised an eyebrow at this story, then glanced at the other, who nodded vigorously in support of his brother’s story. “Really?” Mar looked back at Billy, as if very interested in his tale. “Then what happened?”
“Well, we fought back, of course. But then we got.. well,” He nodded to the trap. “Been stuck ever since.”
"And they just left you here?" Mar asked, finding that... odd. “Who were these people who attacked you?” Mar inquired. “Did they set these traps?”
“Does any of that really matter?” Ben asked, growing impatient. “We need help. Please…”
Mar straightened and turned to him. “Do you know the chances of anyone else coming along this area, in the next week?" He asked. "If it matters to me, I suggest you answer my questions, because there will be no one else coming along for a long time." He informed him. "So, tell me what I want to know, first. Then... when I'm satisfied with your story, I'll assist you." He smiled slightly. "I’ll even take a look at your ribs, and see to your brother’s wounds.” He promised. “Now.. who put the traps here?”
“The people who attacked us, I guess.” Billy put in, anxious to get them both treatment for their wounds. "I dunno how many others there might be. We thought we'd found all of them, but then Ben stepped in that one," He nodded. "There was a net, and a limb pulled back to knock someone down, that sort of thing." He added.
Mar looked at him for a long moment, thinking about this. He narrowed his eyes, glancing at Ben, who didn't offer any corrections. Without a word, he walked over to the campsite, careful of where he stepped (just in case). He ignored the men's protests at him leaving them there. Arriving at the campsite, he kneeled and examined the remains of the fire, then checked the bodies. He was no ranger, but he could see the marks in the dust well enough to tell that there had only been one person sleeping here. A small, light person, by the looks of the dust imprint. A fight had occurred here, too, but that was about all he could glean from the marks. Had he been trained as a ranger, he might have been able to gather more information, but alas, he had not been given any such training.
Straightening, Mar caught sight of something pinned to a nearby tree. Intrigued, he wandered over to take a closer look at it, and he took a moment to read the note. His eyes narrowed after reading it. Her, again. But the handwriting was quite different, this time. Was that because of the materials she'd had to work with? Thinking about that, he pulled the knife out and took the piece of papery bark down from the tree, reading it over again more carefully.
His anger burned deep inside at the first line. A cripple? His memory flashed back to the day he had met Pharak, when he had been seconds away from killing the Invalid. The
Cripple. The father of his childhood enemy. There was no way she could have known about that, though. Could she? He felt a mix of confusion and anger that she would refer to him as a cripple. Then it made him wonder; did she know about the injuries to his arms? How could she? But then... she had gotten into his room at the inn, somehow. He stared at the note for a long moment, until one of the men called out to ask if he was going to help them or not.
Mar glanced up, then returned to them, bringing the note along with him. He looked from one to the other. “Let’s try your story again, shall we?" He suggested with a slight edge to his tone. "If you were camped here, how did your attackers manage to put all these traps here without any of you noticing? While you were… asleep? Did no one stay awake to guard the camp? That would be extremely foolish. With five of you, you said? To take shifts... I find it very unlikely that no one noticed a person sneaking around your camp, bending tree limbs back and digging holes," He scoffed at the very idea of it. “No…” He looked from one to the other. “Here’s what
I think happened. Someone
else was camped here, someone you thought would make an easy target.” He looked at them challengingly, as if daring them to deny it. “You intended to rob… dare I say
her? And then, you probably figured on killing her or something of the sort. You’re robbers, correct?” He asked with a wry smile. “I know your sort.” He had hired plenty like them, after all. He held up a hand to stop them protesting as he saw them exchange alarmed glances. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to report you to the guards.” He added reassuringly. “I only want to know what actually happened here. Now… shall we have the
true story?” He looked hard at them, one at a time.
“Yeah… well, there was this campfire burning, all big and bright, and only one person seemed to be around it. We figured, hey, easy mark." Ben admitted. "But then she uh, she sorta surprised us,” He frowned. “I mean, who’d ever expect a girl so small to be able to fight like… wow.” He shook his head in disbelief. “And the old guy, I mean…”
“Old guy?” Mar interrupted questioningly.
“Yeah, there was a girl, and an old guy, camping here together, I guess.” Billy explained.
“Well, we first thought it was only one person here, but then they showed up out of the shadows. Turns out, the person we thought was sleeping, wasn’t even a real person!” Ben huffed in annoyance.
“Not a real person?”
“Nah, just some leaves and junk stuffed under a blanket,” Ben scowled. "Some trick... it's like they were trying to set us up.
Mar considered this, nodding slowly. “So, this girl…” He circled around Ben slowly. “What did she look like?"
"Uh.. it was pretty dark, but.. red hair? Pretty small," He added. "I mean, I couldn't believe how high she could kick, seeing how short she was," Ben answered.
Mar turned and went back to his horse, putting the note into a saddlebag, then traded it for another paper. He paused, then took off his dark cloak and draped it over his saddle, then he returned and opened out the folded paper, holding it up so that Ben could see. "Her?" He asked, a hint of hope in his tone as he turned to show it to Billy next.
Ben was surprised. “Yeah, that's her!”
"Wait," Billy frowned as he tried to see the paper better. "Does that say there's a
reward for her?"
Mar folded the page and tucked it into his pocket. "That's right, there certainly is,” He answered. "A
substantial reward, for any information leading to the capture of this girl." He added, figuring that information might inspire them to talk a bit more freely.
"Does that mean we get a reward if we catch her?" Billy asked, looking hopeful. "Are you the one offering the reward?"
Mar paused and looked at him, then smiled slightly. "Yes, I am. And if your information is useful, then certainly, you will be rewarded. “But what about this old guy? Who was he?” He wanted to know.
“I dunno," Ben frowned. "Are you going to let me down?” He wondered, impatient.
“Soon.” Mar promised, resisting the temptation to make him spin, like he’d done to Toby that day in the Pelennor.
"Do you have the reward money with you?" Billy asked, thinking of possibilities. He glanced at Ben, and they exchanged a knowing smile. This guy looked rich... once he'd helped them down, they might be able to get some profit out of this day after all.
Mar refrained from rolling his eyes. As if it wasn't obvious they were thinking of robbing him the moment he let them down. Really? How stupid did they think he might be? He ignored the question entirely. “I want to know what this guy looked like, and who he might be. Were they together?” He asked, growing a little impatient. "Were they comrades?"
“He was like, I dunno.. fifty maybe?” Ben proceeded to offer the best description he could of the guy, given that he’d only seen him by the light of a semi-distant campfire. “I dunno if they were together,” He added, trying to think back. “I mean, it seemed like they didn’t really know each other, but they worked together to fight us.” He frowned. “There were five of us. He’s the one who killed our two friends, over there,” He scowled toward their bodies.
“And the girl did
this?” Mar guessed, gesturing to the predicament the two found themselves in.
“Yeah… and our other friend had a messed up arm after he tried to grab her. Then the guy said something to him, and he looked scared, then ran off and left us.” Ben added, frowning. "No idea what he might've said to him though."
Mar nodded and considered this information. He tried to envision the description, which wasn't very good, and tried to check in his memory if it could apply to anyone that he knew. It certainly wasn't Domanol Raxelilta, nor anyone else he could think of. So, she had another ally? He would have to learn more about this. “Was there anything else?” Mar asked, not wanting to miss anything that might be useful to know.
“She had him write a thing,” Billy mentioned faintly.
Mar turned to him. “What?”
“A note or something. She had the guy write something. I watched them while Ben was trying to bandage my arm.”
Mar rubbed his chin stubble thoughtfully. “I see.” He had already found the note, but now he knew that it was the man who had written it, not her. He frowned, wondering what he was missing about that. Why hadn't she written it, herself? He tucked that information away in his mind, for later. “Did you hear her say anything that might explain the note?” He asked, taking another look at it.
“No,” Ben answered, getting annoyed. “Now, will you cut me down, already?”
Mar turned to him. "Not until you've answered one more question. Which way did they go?”
“I dunno.” Ben frowned.
“Which way?” Mar insisted.
"I was busy trying to keep my brother from dying, so I wasn't paying real close attention."
“That way,” Billy offered, pointing the direction Strawberry had gone. "She went off that way, but the guy stuck around for a while. Then he went that way.” He pointed the other direction. "Please, will you help us now? We need a healer."
Mar looked both directions that had been pointed out to him. He was vaguely curious about this guy, but he wasn't interested in him. He wanted
her. So, he would be following her trail. "How long ago was this, by the way?"
"You said that was the last question!" Ben protested.
"Answer me." Mar glared at him.
Ben frowned. "I dunno, sometime in the night. It was dark, and we've been trapped here for hours and hours. Now please," He begged. "Let me down from here. You said you'd help us if we answered your questions..."
"So, I did." Mar acknowledged with a little nod, taking out a knife, as if he was going to cut him down. "And so, I will." He assured him. "Let's have a look at your ribs, shall we?" He smiled darkly as he approached Ben. Ben did not realize, until it was too late, that Mar meant that quite literally.
"Wh-what are you doing!?" Billy shouted, shocked and horrified. For a few moments, he remained frozen in horror as he watched the man torture his brother while he remained alive for a short time.
Mar ignored all sounds from the other guy. His turn would come next, once he had finished with this one. The knife sliced satisfactorily through the man's flesh, exposing his guts and rib cage. Ben's screams of pain and terror didn't last long, and Mar soon left him, still hanging, now with most of his insides spilling out onto the ground.
While it might have been a good occasion to perform a double sacrifice to Lord Zigur, for good luck in his quest or something, Mar knew that these were unacceptable offerings. They were already injured, and close to dying anyway. Which made them useless as offerings.
He took some of Ben's blood and went up to the rock overhang, where he used the blood to paint the emblem of an eye in a few prominent places, as well as some other strange markings, making it appear as if the place had been used as a sacrificial place. Marking the place, for anyone who might come after to know that the servants of the Eye were still at work.
After Billy had recovered slightly from the initial shock of watching the crazy stranger murder his brother, his horror at this unexpected turn of events leant him a fresh wave of adrenaline. Driven by panic as he realized his own danger, he began to frantically pull and yank at his foot, desperate to free himself, without even caring how much it ripped up his foot and ankle in the process. He had to get out of here!
Turning as he completed his 'graffiti', Mar smiled in amusement to see that Billy had managed to get himself free. His foot was bloody, and as he tried to get up to run away, his other knee collapsed under him. He tried to get up again, anyway. Mar let him go a few paces, smiling in a patronizing sort of way. Then he strode over to him while Billy was clutching a tree for support, trying to drag himself back up. Mar kicked hard at his already-injured knee. With a cry, the bandit collapsed to the ground. Mar then used a booted foot to shove him further down onto his back on the ground. He smirked as he pressed his foot into the man's sternum to keep him there. "Did you actually think you'd get away?" He asked with a little laugh, shaking his head in a scolding manner.
"Y-you promised us a reward," Billy stammered, as if this reminder might actually have some affect.
Mar's smile widened slightly. The guy might be unacceptable as an offering, but he didn't have to know that, and Mar could certainly taunt him with such a thought. "Indeed, I did. This
is your reward," He informed him with amusement. "You should feel honored that you have the opportunity to give your life to Lord Zigur. Now, it's best if you don't struggle." He chided him, holding the still-bloody knife up where Billy could see it as he brought it near to him.
"No..!" Billy pleaded, shaking his head in panic as he feebly tried to struggle. He gasped, wincing at the pressure on his chest as Mar pressed harder, making it hard to breathe properly. "Please... I don't.. want to.. die!" He begged, with tears in his eyes.
"Well, everyone has to make sacrifices in some way or another," Mar informed him as if they were discussing something as trivial as giving up a toy or something. "At least a lot of your blood has already fed the earth..." He paused, watching with great satisfaction as terror filled the man's eyes. He paused, hovering the knife near the man's face. "Are you sure she went that way?" He asked softly, nodding toward the wrong direction, to test him.
Billy was shaking in terror, unable to believe this was really happening, but he couldn't deny that it obviously was happening. The question surprised him slightly... was this, possibly, a chance to be spared? He shook his head slightly. "N-no, that way." He corrected, hoping this might earn him some leniency. "Please.. I can.. help you catch her... I can! Please, just.. don't-"
"Sorry," Mar cut him off with a shake of his head, though he was not really the least bit sorry, and his tone made it quite clear that he wasn't. "You can't walk, nor do you have a horse." He pointed out. "You'd only slow down my search, and I'd have to treat your wounds.. no, it's not worth it."
"Then... maybe you could just.. leave me here? Please, just let me live." Billy pleaded.
"And deny Lord Zigur his offering?" Mar feigned offense at that request, and shook his head. "Besides," He added, with a shrug. "If I were to leave you here, you'd just die anyway." He pointed out. Of course, little did Billy know, but that was, in fact, another reason he would not work as an offering, but Mar did not mention that. Honestly, he was really enjoying this. Tormenting the helpless, that was one of his favorite pass times, but alas, he did not have the time to thoroughly enjoy it right now. The girl already had several hours' head start on him, and he did not want to waste too much time...
playing.
By the time he left the clearing, both bandits were dead, and there was a great deal of blood all over the ground and everything in the vicinity of the two bodies. The rock overhang was decorated symbols using their blood, making it appear like an altar of Sauronic worship. Of course, if anyone knew how sacrifices were done in Umbar, they would know that it was not like
this. But that made little difference. So long as any passerby got the message he had intended to leave, that was all that really mattered. He just wished his knife work didn't look so amateurish. It was awkward and clumsy for him having to use his left hand, due to the injuries from that stupid dog. His left arm was still damaged too, but it was easier to use than his right.
Going to his horse, he changed his shirt and folded the blood-stained one into a bundle before stuffing it down into one of his saddlebags. Then he mounted his horse and set off in the direction that Billy had said Strawberry had gone, his mind turning over that message. He'd enjoyed getting a chance to vent his anger, but now he had to figure out the other line, which seemed to be a clue of some sort about where she would be... he just had to make sense of it.
| 
