Chapter 23: The Cry in the Woods
The forest swallowed the road behind them quickly.
Within several minutes, the broken bridge and stranded merchant wagons were hidden by thick trunks and undergrowth. Sunlight reached the ground only in scattered patches, and the sound of the river faded until Kael could hear little beyond their footsteps and the occasional movement of branches overhead.
Bram led.
Kael followed several paces behind with his short sword already drawn.
Garrick came last, carrying the heavy iron bar he had borrowed from the merchant caravan.
They had left Walter, Rowan, and Lily at the bridge with the merchants. Lily had protested until Kael reminded her that if they returned carrying someone wounded, having food, water, cloth, and basic care waiting at the road would be more useful than adding another person to an unknown fight.
The cry came again.
Help!
All three men stopped.
Faint.
Desperate.
But clearer than before.
Kael looked toward Bram.
Direction?
Bram tilted his head.
West. Slightly south
That matches the tracks
They continued.
The old logging path was barely a path anymore. Years without regular traffic had allowed roots and weeds to reclaim most of it, but fresh wagon ruts cut through the growth.
Kael crouched beside them.
There
Several boot prints crossed the mud.
Some deep.
Others lighter.
A long drag mark followed between them.
Bram knelt.
More than one person walked through here
How many?
Bram studied the ground.
Hard to say exactly. Eight at least
Garrick looked farther down the trail.
Those wagons were loaded
Bram nodded.
And something heavy came back this way
Kael pointed toward the drag marks.
Prisoner?
Could be
Kael’s expression tightened.
The System appeared briefly.
[Trail assessment available]
Recent passage detected
Multiple armed travelers probable
At least one individual appears to have been dragged or supported
Estimated passage: less than several hours
Kael dismissed it.
No exact enemy count.
No glowing arrows telling him where to step.
Good.
The System could help organize what he was already seeing, but Kael did not want to become dependent on it to notice dirt beneath his feet.
They moved again.
After several minutes, Garrick raised one hand.
Smoke
Kael smelled it a moment later.
Weak.
Mixed with damp wood and something sharper.
Cookfire.
Bram slowed immediately.
No more talking
Kael nodded.
They left the logging trail and moved through thicker brush.
Bram’s movements changed.
Kael had noticed the same thing at Oakridge when Halwen’s collectors arrived and again near the broken bridge.
The old gardener stopped looking old.
His steps became quieter.
He avoided dry branches without glancing down.
He used the terrain instinctively, choosing places where trees and low brush hid their approach.
Kael watched him for several seconds.
Another question for later.
Bram reached a dense patch of brush and crouched.
Kael moved beside him.
Through the leaves, a clearing opened ahead.
An overturned merchant wagon rested near a fallen oak.
Its cargo had been torn open.
Bolts of cloth lay across the ground beside broken crates. Several small bottles and wrapped bundles had been separated into piles, and Kael recognized the markings on one crate as medicinal supplies.
Eleven men occupied the clearing.
Maybe twelve.
Kael counted twice.
Two remained near the far edge with bows.
Several carried axes or short swords.
One man searched the overturned wagon.
Another sorted stolen goods.
Near the center stood a broader figure wearing old chainmail beneath a brown coat. The armor had been repaired several times but remained better than anything worn by the others.
Former soldier, Kael thought.
Or someone wealthy enough to steal military equipment.
Two prisoners had been tied against a tree.
An elderly man sat slumped with blood along one side of his face.
Beside him, a younger woman struggled against the rope around her wrists.
One of the bandits walked toward the old man and kicked his boot.
Wake up
The prisoner barely moved.
Another bandit laughed.
Leave him. He won’t survive the march anyway
The woman jerked against her restraints.
Don’t touch him
The first man turned toward her.
Keep shouting and we’ll gag you again
Kael’s hand tightened around his sword.
Garrick shifted beside him.
Bram caught his sleeve.
Not yet
Garrick looked toward him.
They’re going to kill the old man
And you’ll get the girl killed too if you walk into eleven armed men with an iron bar
Garrick’s jaw tightened.
But he stayed.
Kael studied the clearing.
He had trained consistently since returning to the Empire, but he knew enough about swordsmanship to understand the difference between training and fighting a dozen armed men in a forest.
His bloodline did not make him invincible.
His title certainly did not.
There were three of them.
Eleven or twelve enemies.
Two archers.
Two prisoners.
Bad ground.
Poor visibility.
A direct attack would be reckless.
The System appeared.
[Combat situation recognized]
Numerical disadvantage significant
Civilian casualties likely in direct engagement
Recommendation: alter battlefield conditions before committing
Kael dismissed it.
That was already what he had been thinking.
He looked around the edge of the clearing.
The bandits had chosen the location because trees protected three sides. Their wagon route entered from the northwestern edge, while a narrow gap between two old trunks offered the easiest path south.
Kael noticed something else.
Several dead trees leaned near that southern opening.
Not large enough to crush the entire camp.
Large enough to block the easiest escape route if dropped correctly.
Bram followed his gaze.
You’re thinking about those trees
Kael nodded.
Can we bring them down quietly?
Not quietly
That’s fine
Bram studied them.
They’ve been dead awhile. One’s almost through at the base already
Garrick looked toward the prisoners.
What’s the plan?
Kael pointed.
We don’t fight all of them at once
He indicated the dead trees.
Block the southern exit. Make enough noise that everyone looks the wrong direction
Then he pointed toward the prisoners.
During the confusion, you go for them
Garrick frowned.
Me?
You’re stronger than I am, and if that old man can’t walk, you’ll have the best chance of carrying him
Garrick could not argue with that.
Kael turned toward Bram.
You and I pull attention toward the north side
Bram glanced at him.
You’re assuming they chase us
Kael looked toward his cloak.
They will once they know who I am
Bram’s expression flattened.
That’s not a plan. That’s using yourself as expensive bait
It can be both
Bram sighed.
Your father would hate this
You’ve met him
I’ve met angry men. Same principle
Kael almost asked what that meant.
Not now.
Garrick looked toward the prisoners again.
What happens after I cut them loose?
Don’t try bringing them through the bandits. Stay near the eastern brush until we open a path. If you can get them moving toward the road, do it
And if I can’t?
Then keep them alive until we come back
Garrick tightened his grip on the iron bar.
Fine
Bram pointed toward Kael.
And you don’t chase anyone deeper into the forest
I wasn’t planning to
You say that too easily
Kael ignored him.
They separated.
Bram circled toward the dead trees while Garrick slipped farther around the eastern edge of the clearing.
Kael remained hidden.
Waiting.
One minute.
Two.
The bandits continued sorting stolen goods.
The woman tried shifting closer to the elderly prisoner.
One of the archers noticed.
Sit still
She glared at him.
The archer stepped toward her.
Kael’s muscles tightened.
Then a bird call came from the southern trees.
Once.
Bram.
Kael moved.
He picked up a small stone and threw it toward the opposite side of the clearing.
It struck a pile of broken crates.
Several bandits turned.
What was that?
One of the archers raised his bow.
Probably an animal
The second noise was considerably harder to dismiss.
Wood cracked.
Loud.
Deep.
Every head turned south.
Bram had not attempted some impossible feat with a single strike. He had cut into the weakest trunk beforehand and used the tree’s own lean against it.
The dead trunk gave way.
It crashed across the narrow southern path and struck another half-rotted tree as it fell.
Branches exploded across the ground.
Men shouted.
What the hell?
Move!
The second tree collapsed more slowly, its upper limbs tangling with the first and turning the easiest exit from the camp into a mess of trunks and branches.
The horses tied near the wagon panicked.
One tore free.
Another pulled against its rope.
The clearing erupted.
Kael stepped out from the northern brush.
Hey!
Several bandits turned.
Their leader reached for his sword.
Kael lowered his hood.
The man’s eyes narrowed.
Who are you?
Kael did not answer immediately.
He wanted them looking at him.
Behind them, Garrick had already entered the clearing from the east.
He moved low behind the overturned wagon, hidden by the confusion.
Kael took another step.
Kael Asterion
Nothing happened for half a heartbeat.
Then one of the younger bandits laughed.
Never heard of him
The man beside him went pale.
Idiot
What?
That’s the Tenth Prince
The laughter stopped.
The leader stared more carefully.
His expression changed.
Not fear.
Calculation.
Prince?
Kael raised his sword.
You robbed the wrong road
The leader smiled.
No
He drew his own weapon.
Looks like we found the best cargo of the week
Several men laughed nervously.
The leader pointed toward Kael.
Alive
Kael’s eyes narrowed.
That told him something.
The man was thinking about ransom.
Good.
Alive meant they might hesitate to take lethal shots.
Hopefully.
An archer raised his bow anyway.
Bram emerged from behind another tree and threw a fist-sized piece of wood.
It struck the archer’s arm as he released.
The arrow flew wide.
Kael moved.
The first bandit charged with a short sword.
Too eager.
Too much weight forward.
Kael did not need the System to tell him that.
He stepped to the outside, caught the man’s wrist with his free hand, and struck the flat of his blade against the attacker’s knuckles.
The sword dropped.
Kael kicked it away.
The bandit stumbled.
Kael could have cut his throat.
Instead, he shoved him backward.
Stay down
The man looked startled.
Then furious.
He lunged barehanded.
Kael struck him across the jaw with the pommel.
He collapsed.
The clearing changed.
The bandits had expected a noble boy.
They were beginning to understand Kael knew enough to be dangerous.
Not enough to win carelessly.
But enough that mistakes would cost them.
Three men moved toward him.
Bram intercepted one with his staff.
The old gardener twisted aside from an axe swing, struck the man’s wrist, then drove the lower end of the staff into his stomach.
The movement was clean.
Far too clean for gardening.
The bandit doubled over.
Bram stepped behind him and shoved him into the path of the second attacker.
Both went down in a tangle.
Kael saw it.
Later.
Definitely later.
The third man reached him.
Kael caught his first strike.
Steel rang.
The force traveled painfully through Kael’s arm.
The bandit was stronger.
Kael gave ground.
The man smiled.
Not so impressive now, Prince
Kael shifted his stance.
The bandit attacked again.
Heavy right-side cut.
Kael parried.
Another.
Kael stepped back.
The man mistook retreat for weakness and committed farther.
There.
Kael turned his wrist, redirected the blade instead of trying to stop it directly, and stepped inside the man’s reach.
His shoulder struck the bandit’s chest.
Kael brought his sword hilt sharply against the man’s mouth.
Blood sprayed.
The bandit staggered.
Kael swept his leg.
He fell.
Kael placed the tip of his sword against the man’s throat.
Don’t
The bandit froze.
Kael breathed harder than he wanted anyone to notice.
He was not invincible.
Good.
He needed to remember that.
Near the wagon, Garrick reached the prisoners.
The woman saw him and started struggling harder.
Quiet
Her eyes widened.
Garrick crouched behind the tree.
I’m getting you out
He used a small knife from his belt on the rope around her wrists.
The elderly man’s eyes opened weakly.
Who—
Save your breath
The ropes fell.
The woman immediately moved toward the older prisoner.
Father
He’s your father?
Yes
Can he walk?
I don’t know
Garrick cut the old man’s restraints.
Try
The man attempted to stand.
His knees gave way.
Garrick caught him.
Damn
The woman looked toward the fight.
We have to move
Garrick looked east.
Two bandits remained between them and the tree line.
He handed the woman the knife.
Stay behind me
She gripped it with both hands.
Garrick lifted her father across one shoulder.
Then he picked up the iron bar again with his free hand.
The woman stared.
How strong are you?
Blacksmith
Apparently that was enough explanation.
They moved.
Kael heard the second archer before he saw him.
String.
He turned.
Too late.
The bow had already been drawn.
The arrow released.
Kael threw himself sideways.
It passed close enough that he heard it cut through the air before burying itself in a tree behind him.
His heart hammered.
The archer reached for another.
Bram couldn’t reach him in time.
Kael raised his free hand instinctively.
Cold moved through his fingers.
He stopped.
For the smallest instant, frost formed along the edge of his glove.
Then vanished.
Kael stared.
What—
No time.
The archer nocked another arrow.
Kael ducked behind the overturned remains of a crate.
The next arrow punched through the wood.
Kael’s breathing sharpened.
The cold had been real.
He knew it.
But whatever had happened, he could not rely on something he did not understand in the middle of a fight.
The bandit leader shouted.
Stop playing with him!
He charged.
Kael rose from behind the crate.
The leader was better than the others.
Immediately obvious.
No wasted swing.
No wild rush.
His sword stayed close to his body as he advanced.
Kael adjusted his grip.
The leader smiled.
You train at the palace?
Something like that
Then they taught you badly
His first strike came fast.
Kael barely caught it.
The second forced him backward.
Third.
Kael turned it aside.
The leader stepped closer and drove a knee toward Kael’s stomach.
Kael twisted.
Not enough.
The strike caught his side.
Pain shot through him.
Kael stumbled.
The leader’s sword came down.
Kael rolled.
Steel struck dirt.
Kael recovered to one knee.
The man smiled.
You’re worth more alive
Kael wiped blood from the corner of his mouth.
You’re very focused on my value
Do you know what Houses would pay for an Imperial Prince?
Probably less after meeting me
The leader laughed.
Then attacked again.
This time, Kael did not meet the blade.
He moved.
One step left.
The leader adjusted.
Kael gave more ground.
Another strike.
Another retreat.
The man became impatient.
There.
Kael intentionally opened his right side.
The leader saw it.
Committed.
Kael pivoted.
The blade passed close.
Kael trapped the man’s sword arm beneath his own, drove his elbow into the leader’s face, then slashed downward across the outside of his thigh.
Not deep.
Enough.
The leader grunted and dropped to one knee.
Kael kicked the sword from his hand.
The tip of Kael’s blade stopped beneath the man’s chin.
The clearing had become quieter.
Several bandits were injured.
Two had run toward the blocked southern route only to discover Bram’s deadfall.
Others were beginning to understand the situation was not unfolding as expected.
Kael stared down at the leader.
Call them off
The man smiled through blood on his lip.
Or what?
Kael’s expression hardened.
I don’t want to kill you
The leader’s smile widened.
There’s your problem
He reached for a dagger.
Kael saw it.
His sword moved.
The blade cut across the man’s forearm.
The dagger fell.
The leader cried out.
Kael stepped closer.
Wanting to avoid killing you doesn’t mean I’ll let you kill me
The leader stared at him.
For the first time, the arrogance disappeared.
Kael raised his voice.
Drop your weapons
One bandit laughed nervously.
There’s still more of us
Bram stepped into view behind him.
Not enough
The man turned.
Garrick appeared from the eastern brush carrying the injured prisoner across one shoulder while the freed woman followed behind him.
The prisoners were out.
That changed everything.
Kael no longer needed to protect people tied in the middle of the clearing.
Several bandits realized the same thing.
One lowered his axe.
Then another.
The remaining archer looked toward the trees.
Bram pointed his staff at him.
Try it
The bow lowered.
The leader remained on one knee.
Kael looked around.
Weapons hit the ground one by one.
Not all from loyalty to their leader.
Most because the fight had stopped being profitable.
Kael understood that.
He lowered his sword slightly.
Bram looked toward him.
What now?
Kael’s breathing was still uneven.
His side hurt.
His arm ached from parrying.
And somewhere beneath his glove, his fingers still felt strangely cold.
He looked at the overturned wagon.
The medicine.
The stolen food.
The prisoners.
Then at the men who had been hiding in Blackwood’s forests while merchants stopped using its roads.
Now we find out why nobody caught them before we did
The leader laughed bitterly from the ground.
You think we’re the problem?
Kael looked at him.
No
That answer surprised him.
Kael continued.
I think you’re one of them
The man’s expression changed.
Small.
But Kael saw it.
Bram did too.
Kael sheathed his sword only after Garrick confirmed the prisoners were safely beyond the clearing.
Then he crouched in front of the wounded leader.
What’s your name?
The man said nothing.
Kael waited.
Eventually—
Rusk
Kael nodded.
Rusk
He looked around the camp.
You’ve been robbing merchants on Blackwood roads long enough that traders know your reputation
Rusk said nothing.
Yet nobody removed you
Still nothing.
Kael’s eyes narrowed.
Who have you been paying?
That finally got a reaction.
Rusk’s gaze flicked away.
Kael smiled without humor.
There it is
Bram looked toward him.
You think they’re protected?
I think twelve bandits don’t make three caravans disappear every month while an administrator claims bandit attacks are declining unless somebody is either very incompetent or very comfortable with them being here
Rusk’s face hardened.
Kael stood.
Tie them
Bram looked around.
With what?
Kael nodded toward the ropes they had used on the prisoners.
Seems appropriate
Garrick returned from the trees.
The old man’s alive. Woman says his name is Elias. He’s bleeding badly but conscious
We get them back to Lily first
Garrick nodded.
And these men?
We take whoever can walk
Rusk laughed.
To where? Your great army?
Kael looked around.
That was a fair question.
House Kael did not have a prison.
It barely had reliable doors.
Bram smiled faintly.
The manor cellar still has locks
Kael looked at him.
Why does the manor have a locked cellar?
Edwin can explain later
Kael was beginning to realize Edwin had a great deal to explain later.
He looked toward Rusk.
Congratulations
Rusk frowned.
You’re going to be the first prisoner of House Kael
That did not seem to comfort him.
The return toward the road was slower.
Garrick carried Elias for most of the way.
The freed woman walked beside him, one hand holding her father’s sleeve whenever the terrain became difficult.
Her name was Mara Densell.
Kael recognized it.
She was the same widow from the tax collection who had been allowed to carry part of her debt forward.
That coincidence bothered him.
You were traveling?
Mara nodded.
My father went to Aurelia for medicine. I went with him because he can’t make the journey alone anymore
She looked back toward the captured bandits.
We were returning when they attacked
Kael glanced toward the salvaged medicine Garrick had recovered.
For you?
Some. Most was for three families in Oakridge
Kael’s jaw tightened.
Banditry did not just steal wealth.
It interrupted exactly the things Blackwood lacked most.
Medicine.
Trade.
Movement.
The forest began thinning.
Soon they heard voices near the road.
Lily appeared first.
When she saw the blood on Kael’s face, her expression changed instantly.
What happened?
I’m fine
You are bleeding
Mostly someone else’s
That did not improve her mood.
Then she saw Garrick carrying Elias.
Everything else was forgotten.
Here
Lily hurried forward.
The merchants cleared space beside one wagon while Walter brought blankets.
Rowan took one look at the captured men trailing behind Bram and stared at Kael.
I told you not to do anything stupid
Kael looked around.
Technically, it worked
That is not a defense
Walter walked over.
You found them
Kael nodded.
And apparently half the merchandise stolen from travelers on this road
The lead merchant recognized one of the broken crates.
That’s mine
Another man moved closer.
That seal belongs to the caravan we lost two weeks ago
Kael looked toward Rusk.
The bandit leader’s expression closed again.
More questions.
Always more questions.
Lily called from beside Elias.
Kael
He turned.
He’s alive, but we need a proper healer
Kael looked toward Edwin’s old map inside his satchel.
The nearest reliable healer was still far too distant.
Another Blackwood problem that could no longer remain a note on parchment.
Kael looked toward the road south.
Hollow Creek was still ahead.
So was the rest of the territorial survey.
But the day had changed.
A broken bridge had led to wagon tracks.
The tracks had led to bandits.
And the bandits had already exposed something else.
Blackwood’s roads were unsafe for more than one reason.
Kael looked toward Rusk.
Before we leave this place, you’re going to tell me who knew you were here
Rusk smiled faintly.
And if I don’t?
Kael glanced toward the merchants beginning to identify stolen property.
Then toward the prisoners he had rescued.
Then back at the bandit leader.
You will
Not because Kael intended to torture him.
Because Rusk had already reacted once.
Men like him talked eventually when silence stopped being useful.
Kael’s thoughts returned briefly to the flash of cold that had formed beneath his glove during the battle.
Something else had happened in the forest.
Something he did not understand.
He kept that part to himself.
For now, Blackwood had enough mysteries.
And one of them was sitting beneath a tree with his hands bound, watching Kael far more carefully than a common bandit should.