Journey of the Messenger Cycle 1 Part 9c

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Ijah was surprised by the response from the rest of the soldiers when the old man was struck. She clearly heard one of them call out, “Father!” Many moved to assist, some dismounted. Others scanned the area around them while Berri stayed low to reload.

Ijah and the rest of the women also stayed behind cover, she looked over to the woman with the spear, Hrelda, or so one of the women had called her. When she had the woman’s attention she asked, “Can you run?”

“Well enough.”

“After Berri’s next shot, run west, forty paces. Find cover and support us as you can.”

Hrelda gave a hesitant nod, Ijah could see the fear in the woman’s eyes, she gave her an encouraging smile before turning her attention back to the men along the road. Half a dozen were cautiously advancing in a loose line through the sparse trees. They were unsure where their enemy was. That would not last long. Berri had reloaded, Ijah pointed at the nearer man who was part of the advancing force, “That one, with the chain mail.”

Berri moved to sight in. The man spotted the movement and called out to the others, “Over here!” He spurred his horse forward, pointing with his sword. Berri’s bolt slammed into the man’s chest, he cried out and dropped his sword, managing to stay in the saddle. Ijah glanced behind her and was gratified to see Hrelda sprinting away from their position. Many of the men shouted and cursed, they began to pursue. Berri started to reload.

Two of the horsemen were going to pass near their position, Ijah waited a bit, then sprinted out from where she had been hiding. The closest man saw her at the last moment and tried to veer away, her sword briefly cut into the horse before slicing into the man’s leg. He roared in pain, yanked on the reins and swung wildly at her with a mace. She ducked as the horse passed. Others of the advancing line had seen her,

there were warning shouts from some of the men at the road.

She ran towards the next man as he slowed, turning in his saddle to keep track of her. His horse began to turn as she closed, he raised his long handled axe. Ijah darted to the side, the man swung at her, the momentum of the horse and the fact that she had moved to his left spoiled his attack. Ijah thrust upwards, the haft of his weapon struck her shoulder and her blade briefly plunged into his neck. She careened off the rear flank of the horse. Her sword went one way, she went the other, stumbling half a dozen paces.

The women had also joined the melee, moving on the first man she had attacked. He was on the ground while one of them was wildly swinging at him with her hand axe, Ijah looked for her sword. She spotted it. Most of the other soldiers were advancing from the road. Two others from the first group were moving towards her, realizing she would be flanked if she went to her weapon she stopped and drew her knife.

The closest man spurred forward, raised his sword and shouted, “Die bitch!”

A crossbow bolt slammed into his head, punching through his helmet. He careened to one side, dropping his blade. Ijah jumped to the left, avoiding the horse as she readied her knife. The other man angled in towards her, she raised her arm and whipped it forward as if she was throwing her blade, the man ducked behind his horse’s neck. Ijah repeated the motion as he looked back up, this time actually throwing the weapon. He managed to deflect the knife with his arm and reined in to stay close to her.

Ijah dropped and rolled back, staying low. She spotted her previous foe’s axe behind her and to the right. Her present foe attempted to trample her, but she rolled away in the direction of the dropped weapon. She saw the woman with the hand axe move up on his left flank. He made his horse rear and the woman backed off. Ijah snatched up the axe and stood. They would soon be surrounded, she shouted to her companions, “Fall back! Retreat!”

The woman with the hand axe took a hoof to the head and fell. Ijah came up behind the rider and swung at his lower back, the blow separated chain mail links and leather but did not bite deep. The man shouted, backhanding her. A glancing blow to her head. She staggered back, dazed. The horse turned, she stumbled further back, now aligned with the rear of the horse, she dropped to the ground.

It kicked. Ijah crawled backwards, losing the axe in her desperate attempt to avoid being stomped. She saw Berri run up, she shot the man from two paces away. He slumped in the saddle, the horse kicked a couple more times, Ijah continued to back away. Berri turned and threw her crossbow, the nearer horse settled and moved off a bit. Berri went after it, grabbing at the wounded rider, she tried to drag him clear.

Ijah stood, another horse was thundering towards her, the pretty woman was leaning forward and to one side. “Grab my arm!”

She did so, grabbing the woman by the biceps, she kicked up as the woman pulled. Ijah barely hooked a foot over the saddle bags on the rear of the horse as the pretty woman was nearly pulled from the saddle. Ijah dangled from the side as the woman struggled to keep a hold of her and stay seated.

Ijah struggled to find something to grip with her free hand, but she could find no purchase, the pretty woman managed to regain her seating as the horse was slowing. Using her core muscles Ijah reached up and managed to gain a tenuous grip and the back of the saddle. Suddenly another horse was alongside them. Berri leaned over, grabbed Ijah’s dangling leg and pulled up. She swung onto the rear of the horse, wrapping her arms around the other woman’s midsection and hung on tightly.

Berri was shouting and pointing ahead of them, “You two deal with the horseman, I’ll get Hrelda.” They galloped forward.

Ijah glanced behind them, at least three of the enemy were only a few paces back, “We can’t stop! Do you have a weapon?”

“No, I dropped it getting the horse.”

Ijah looked to Berri, but the girl was leaned over her horse’s neck, pulling ahead of them. Further ahead, near a large oak she spotted a dead horse, a man sprawled against the trunk of the tree and a bloody Hrelda running around the tree avoiding another man who was still mounted.

They were all going to die. Carefully she adjusted how she was sitting, kept hold of the woman with one arm and struggled to open the saddle bag, it was an awkward reach. She managed to open it, the first thing she grabbed was a water or wine skin. She spared a glance at the riders behind them and tossed the bladder at them. The next couple things she grabbed were light weight and of little use, still, she threw them behind her as well.

“Hang on!” Ijah gripped the woman in front of her as they started to slow. They came face to face with the rider who had been chasing Hrelda, both horses reared. Ijah half fell, half threw herself off the animal. When she hit the ground, she rolled towards the nearest tree, hoping to avoid being trampled.

She stopped when she rolled into the man sprawled at the base of the tree, his neck was broken and pieces of bark were littered around him. His main weapon, a sword, judging by the empty scabbard, was not in sight. Thankfully the dead man had been the sort who believed in having plenty of backup weapons. While horses screamed and people shouted around her, she took his short sword and a hand axe, leaving a small mace and plenty of knives. She stood and shifted her position further around the tree. Not far from her, Hrelda was getting a hand up onto Berri’s mount. A riderless horse thundered past them.

Ijah moved around the tree. Another riderless horse moved past, bucking and snorting. Wondering what had happened to the men who had been in close pursuit Ijah moved out from the cover of the tree. She saw the men sprawled on the ground, one was still alive and screaming, a long shafted arrow had pierced through his leather armour under his left shoulder. The other two had likewise been struck down. The pretty woman who had saved her was still mounted.

Their foes further back towards the road were withdrawing, it seemed a couple of them had also been hit by arrows. Ijah looked around for whoever it was that had come to their aid. She had sent the two women with bows to get help, surely they could not have returned so quickly? The long shafts that had struck down their enemies could not have been shot from those bows.

Berri called out, “Look!”

Ijah looked to where Berri was. She pointed towards the hill where the other women had fled. Through the trees she spotted Walker, striding purposefully towards them. He came directly to her and she could not believe how relieved she was to see him. She was still alive, as were most of the women she had tried to rescue.

He stopped a pace or so from her, “It seems we we’re able to repay our debt in kind. How are you, Ijah?”

She stepped forward, feeling a thrill of wild exultation, “Well enough, Walker. My gratitude for your timely help.”

“We happened to have come this way after our business was finished in the Madden Hills.”

“The undead?”

He nodded, “The basic issue of the encroaching hordes was handled readily enough, in fact I think the locals would have dealt with that problem without our help. Things became complicated after that.”

“I would love to hear that story, if we have time later. There are more pressing concerns at the moment, however.”

“Of course. What can I do to help?”

Berri came up to them, leading a horse on which Hrelda slumped, “Hi Walker.”

He gave a nod, “Berri.”

“How’d you get here?”

“Through the ways. That hill back there is a point of power, it makes for a good landmark when looking for a place to exit.”

“Oh, lucky us.”

“Should we see to your associate?”

“Oh, yeah, that’s what I came over for.”

Ijah left them to it, she walked towards where the battle had started, hoping her sword was still there. Such a weapon could not easily be replaced here in the north. The pretty woman was already there, in fact, she watched as the woman picked up her sword, then the woman remounted and made her way back towards Ijah.

She reined in and dismounted, “Here, your sword. It’s a fine weapon.”

“Thank you.” Ijah took the blade and inspected it, then looked to the other woman. She felt an expectant tension between the two of them.

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