At first, Samuel thrashed desperately against the bandit who held him from behind, kicking back in a futile attempt to break free. This got him nothing but more pain as the bandit wrenched his arm even further, so he gave up the attempt for a moment. He cast his gaze around quickly, seeing a total of five bandits. The two holding Samuel and Tobi weren’t armed, as they were focused on restraining their captives, but the other three each carried short metal blades. The weapons were in horrible condition, but that wouldn’t make them less lethal.

Down on the ground, Tobi had gone very still. Samuel thought that he might have been knocked out when the other bandit had slammed his head down, but he wasn’t sure. He knew Tobi was a tough individual. He had to be after years of training under the expert Shigeru. At the very least, Samuel was certain that he could think of a way to get them out of this sticky situation.

Immediately after that thought came another, angrier one. What was he doing, waiting for someone else to rescue him? If he was going to be traveling alone in the future, he needed to be able to look after himself. He couldn’t count on stronger and more experienced friends to always be at his side, ready to fight off any challenge that threatened to overwhelm him.

He forced his breathing, which had picked up and become uneven, to settle. Going light-headed in panic wouldn’t help him any now. He forced his entire body into a state of calm, the muscles relaxing. The sensation of pain from his right arm faded slightly as if it were moving away from him. He could, at the very least, break himself away from the bandit holding him. Then he’d get some distance, and figure out the next step.

Opting for full power over efficiency, Samuel sent the mana in his body whirling around with incredible force. As it moved, parts of it broke off and formed small arcs of actual electricity along his body. He cried out with the excruciating pain, but it had done the trick. The bandit was shocked just as badly as he was, and let go of him, unable to handle the burning impact.

Samuel jumped forward as far as he could, dodging the two bandits who had moved in to attack him. Their swords cleaved through the air where he had been an instant before. He sailed right toward the bandit holding Tobi, colliding hard with the man and knocking him off of his apprentice. Tobi was free and up in a flash, ready to meet the two bandits pursuing Samuel.

“Halika!” Samuel shouted, as soon as he rolled clear of the bandit he’d tackled. Faster than he could blink, the long blue crystalline blade flew from the dirt where it had landed back to his hand, and Samuel slammed the hilt into the back of the bandit’s head, knocking the man out. Then he darted forward again, ready to attack.

Tobi moved in a deadly whirl, hooking his fallen spear with one foot and kicking it up into his hands. He blocked the downward stroke of the first bandit with ease, knocking the man’s weapon to the side. Then he lashed out with a high kick to the man’s head, his left foot moving faster than Samuel could track. There was enough casual force behind the blow to send the man flying to the side, into his comrade and knocking them both down. Even Samuel was forced to stay back so as to avoid being struck by the long weapon.

Samuel moved around his apprentice to confront the bandit who had held him, the crystal blade flashing out in a quick thrust. The bandit had already drawn his own weapon, however, and deflected Samuel’s attack. Then he went on his own attack, swinging the blade wildly. Samuel parried and deflected the sword as he was forced to give ground, but there was no grace or form to the rush, and the young mage knew that even with little training, he had the advantage.

He twirled the tip of his sword in a small little circle, catching the point of the bandit’s weapon and sending it skyward. The man, finding no resistance to this attack, staggered slightly in the follow-through and glanced up to see what had happened. It was an instinctual move, and it only distracted him for a second, but that was enough time for Samuel to dart forward and cut him down.

Likewise, Tobi was clearly winning his fight, even though he fought two on one. The long body of his spear was a circular blur, the hint of silver that was the head a gleaming streak that whipped through the air. It was a frightening sight for Samuel, and even more so for the bandits who faced him. He swiped the spear horizontally, knocking the legs of one man out from under him. Then he rolled to the side to avoid a swing from his other opponent, coming out of the maneuver with yet another spinning sweep that cut the man across the chest.

The last bandit, who had remained hidden for most of the fight, took that chance to spring into the open. He was holding two long knives, and he lunged at Tobi, the blades aiming for the apprentice’s unprotected back. Without looking, Tobi batted the weapons out of the man’s hand with the butt of his spear. The man let out a surprised yelp, and, on balance, decided he didn’t want to fight anymore. He turned and ran for the tall grass, leaving his companions behind him.

Samuel forced his mana outward, stretching it two dozen feet in either direction to make sure there were no more bandits in hiding. He registered nothing apart from what he’d already seen, so he let himself relax at last. He nodded reassuringly at his apprentice, and Tobi stabbed his spear into the ground.

The least injured of the bandits was the man that Tobi had kicked, so the apprentice grabbed the man roughly by the front of his shirt and hauled him up to his feet. The man looked a little dazed, and his legs were unsteady as Tobi set him down. His comrades were laying, wounded or dead, on the ground around him, and their two intended targets stood before them, unharmed.

The man swallowed nervously, his chest heaving with fear as Tobi drew closer. The normally happy, joyful face was now a dark mask of anger. He no longer looked like a cheerful youth traveling with his mentor. This was the expert, battle-hardened warrior that served as Shigeru’s lieutenant and commanded the respect of many guards and soldiers.

“You dare attack travelers on the King’s Highway?” Tobi said loudly, almost shouting into the man’s face. “Are you stupid?”

The man said nothing, and Tobi shook him. “Well? These roads are patrolled by soldiers! How did you know there would be no men to catch you?”

Samuel slid his blade back into its sheath, puzzled by Tobi’s question. He didn’t know why it would be significant for them to be operating between patrols. But he suspected that Tobi had a reason for this line of questioning, so he made no move to interrupt. He focused on binding the hands of the other two bandits who were just now stirring, then tied them back to back and left them where he could keep an eye on them.

“What army official is giving your party the patrol information!” Tobi shouted at the man, shaking him roughly again. “There’s no way you can avoid the patrols without it!”

“I ain’t knowin’ no soldiers!” The man exclaimed, trying to break free from Tobi’s grip. “I ain’t knowin’ now soldiers!”

Tobi kicked his feet out from under him, and the man hit the ground on his side, too winded to move. The warrior then looked at Samuel, his face twisted into a thoughtful expression.

“There’s no way of knowing if the leader of their troupe is here,” he said, gesturing around at the bandits. “But we can always turn these three in, and let the wardens get the information from them.”

“But Milagre is several hours away,” Samuel pointed out. “They’d take forever to get here unless you want us to go back while dragging them.”

“We don’t have to go to Milagre,” Tobi explained. There is an outpost on this road, where the patrols are garrisoned while on duty. There’s a Watch Sergeant there who can take them.”

“How far away are they?”

“No more than half an hour on foot. But they’ll ride here, so maybe ten minutes.”

“I see,” Samuel said slowly. “Which of us should go fetch them? You’re more likely to be recognized, and you have the authority.”

“No need,” Tobi said. He shoved the bandit toward Samuel with a kick. “Watch him for me, will you?”

Tobi retreated several steps away from the firepit, pulling a roll of parchment out from his rucksack and unfurling it. Samuel could just barely make out the signs of arcane markings on the paper before it began to glow brightly. Tobi spoke into it, his words too muted to make out. After about a minute, Tobi closed the scroll and let it fall. The parchment dissolved before it hit the ground, disappearing before their eyes.

“It’s a message scroll,” Tobi explained once he spotted Samuel’s confusion. “One of the Guild Mages invented the enchantment a few years ago. Now they are sold in virtually every store that deals with magic items.”

They waited around for about ten minutes until the distant sight of a small group of horses caught their eye. They dragged the bound bandits closer to the road, waiting for the horsemen to draw closer. The bandits were more or less accepting of their fate by now and made no attempt to escape. The leader of the approaching troupe saw Tobi wave for his attention and turned his horse’s head to face them.

The horses came to a halt beside them, and the leader dismounted. He was a very broad man wearing heavy armor that couldn’t fully disguise his large gut. He was still a powerful man, but it was just as obvious that a life of sitting behind his desk had taken its toll on his body.

“Are you Sergeant Moran?” Tobi asked. “It was I who sent you the message.”

“Aye,” the man said shortly, peering at the bandits who sat on the ground. “These the men you talked about? They’re not too easy on the eyes, are they?”

“That is correct, Sergeant,” Tobi said. “I believe they are in contact with a local officer and have learned the timing of patrols.”

The soldier let out a short quiet curse. “I was beginning to wonder why reports of attacks were rising, but we couldn’t find any of these cretins. I’ll have to change patrol times, and keep a close eye on who’s reading them.”

“We’ll leave them to your care,” Tobi said with a bow. “My mentor and I will be setting out after we enjoy some coffee.”

The other soldiers produced thick chains and began tying the bandits together. Every few feet of chain, there were thick leather cuffs to put around the bandits’ necks. If one of them tried to run, they’d only get a sore neck. The bandits showed no sign of struggle or hesitation at the treatment, their eyes too busy trying to stay focused on Tobi. They were wary of the apprentice, as if afraid he would jump at them and attack.

The other bandits, the ones who hadn’t survived the fight, were slung across the saddles of the other horses. They would be carried back to the garrison as well, for documentation and burial. Samuel and Tobi waved farewell as the men turned around and headed back. With a sigh of relief that neither of them was aware of giving, they returned to their now dead fire and started to boil the coffee pot again.