Of Plots and Mischief

Chapter 14: Ambush

They were alert after that. Phyllon spread out his Gift, trying to catch the people following them, his breath catching when he realised they were far. Torynik looked sharply at that, understanding what that meant. Phyllon gave a small nod in confirmation, nodding slightly ahead of them and behind them, where he had detected other human emotions. It was easier to pinpoint strangers in a forest than in the port, given the lower possibilities of others being present. Torynik understood his gestures, quietly parting from the group to scout ahead in the direction he indicated. Sonaya watched him with narrowed eyes before slowly retreating backwards to attempt to obfuscate their trail.

It was getting too quiet. Too quiet. He slipped his Karivali from its sheath, ready to draw at notice. A rustle at his side and a glint of silver indicated the prince was doing the same. It appeared he was not the only one who caught the movement. They exchanged glances and stood back to back just as the forest burst into activity.

Phyllon felt glad that their attackers had no projectiles, which they would have been hard up against. He found himself at a rhythm as he and the prince as they fended off their attackers.

Phyllon flicked his knives, going fast and under evading as he was taught, receiving as much as he gave. Oh, how it hurt, but somehow, the adrenaline made it less noticeable. He managed to knock the one in front of him and shortly finished the next.

Prince Karriv was doing well as expected, based on what he had seen from his fighting earlier. He was tiring, though, his stamina low after the long hike and fighting. Phyllon darted forward to block a strike at the prince before dodging his own attacker and countering with a kick.

Phyllon turned back to his own fight, wiping a narrow cut with the back of his hand. They were poorly trained, he could see, and yet, by numbers, they could still overwhelm them. It was a hastly put together group, which he suspected was put together just before they departed to the forest. He whipped forward to hamstring an attacker who got close, catching them off guard and gaining a moment's relief.

He was tiring, though he could see that he was still doing better than the prince. He diverted more and more of their attackers towards him, slashing forward with his dagger, warding off any attacks within his reach. The prince was injured and visibly slowing, which was problematic.

Phyllon scanned the surrounding, grim faced, until he felt a familiar burst of emotion from the forest. He looked up, smiling as he saw the signal, ducking just in time to see his attacker slumping with a dart in his neck. There were a few thumps, and he saw some of the attackers around him and the prince collapsing as the paralysis took place. There was a moment of confusion that Phyllon used to press on, quickly disarming the rest before knocking them unconscious with the hilt of his blade.

His adrenaline peaked as he felt someone approaching behind Sonaya, only to calm down as he realised it was just Torynik. He looked around to take stock, slightly confused at what he saw.
were only eight attackers around them, slightly less than what he had sensed before. He saw Torynik come into view, raising his hand to indicate he had caught 4 more, and gestured back to Sonaya to indicate 3. Phyllon relaxed, realising that that was all, and he bent down to recover the darts, careful not to let them touch his skin. He remembered the earlier warning and found his hand touching his bag. He returned them to Sonaya with a raised eyebrow. He shrugged before putting them away, disguised once again.

Torynik secured their attackers, at least the once who were living, with Asmir quietly helping him. As for the prince, he sat a bit apart slightly dazed, staring at his wounds as though he could hardly believe they were there. Phyllon and Sonaya made their way to him, approaching As they would a wounded animal.

"Your highness?"

He looked up, a wild helpless look in his eyes before turning back to his wounds.

Sonaya sighed before he picked up his knife, where he had dropped it before wiping the blood off using leaves.