Frost and Snow

Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The travelers walked up to the cart when I had stopped the horses, though the closer they came the more I got the feeling that something was odd. Valeria just shrugged when I looked at her for her opinion, but I could feel a slight hum of magic surround the cart; she felt it too.

It was an ominous feeling; perhaps it was something in the aura that the three had or a look in their eyes or something in the way they walked that gave away their intentions. The moments they took to walk closer to the cart seemed to stretch out over hours and I wanted to urge the horses to move and ride past them, but something made me hesitate.

What if they really were travelers in need of our help? Leaving anyone out in a storm like this without supplies was something I might only wish to happen to my enemies. I could not see much of our surroundings, though I assumed we must still be traveling over the fields as I could not see any trees, and people caught outside here, in this kind of weather without any form of shelter to go to, I would feel bad to ignore them in the case they were travelers and only that.

However, most of my concern disappeared when I noticed the three people were carrying weapons. And not just carrying them, but having them ready to strike too. I hissed at Valeria and in an instant the soft hum of magic that I heard before became a barely visible wall between us and the ambushers.

They must have noticed it too because they came running at us now, weapons raised and ready to strike. I was not about to trust Valeria’s shield completely and drew my own sword; three opponents I could take.

“What do you want?” I yelled, but they did not answer me. Instead, the sight of me seemed to fuel their rage even more.

I did not flinch when the first blow hit the shield, but Valeria gasped; they must have been stronger than she anticipated. Keeping my sword ready I was closely watching the ambushers; they did not tire quickly, so I assumed they must have been doing this for quite a while, or they had been hard workers before they became thieves.

Valeria was struggling to keep the shield up; she was a Third Level Mage and should have no problem to keep the three out, but she was tired, cold and not used to traveling.

“What do you want? SPEAK!” I yelled again and I glared at them. For a moment they stared at me in shock, and then one of them pointed his sword at me.

“Your life for those of my family, you Demon!” The man yelled back at me, raised his sword above his head and slammed it against the shield, as if to cleave the magical barrier in two. He almost did too; I could see the magic wavering for an instant before Valeria strengthened it again.

The man saw it too and he smirked. “Your silly little shield will not hold out for long, Snow Witch’s Filth!” This earned laughs from the other two and they continued hacking away at the shield.

His family had died at the hands of the Snow Witch and I felt a pang of guilt. I had hoped that if it came to a confrontation I could merely knock them out, but the tone of his voice betrayed the man’s real intention; he wanted to fight to the death. The other two did not look as determined and were probably here only for the supplies, not ready to die for a goal they must deem impossible.

If it was a death match he wanted, he would get it. But I was not going to lose, death was not an option for me; I had fought hard to have control over my actions again and then had to fight for my right to keep living during the Hearing. The Snow Witch would die by my hands and by my hands only. If she did not, even more lives would end in vain.

I turned to Valeria who grimaced and was holding a tight grip on a dagger; it looked more decorative than practical, but the edge seemed sharp enough and it would be a better defense than nothing at all. Nodding back at her I jumped of the cart to confront the attackers, sword ready to strike the moment the shield would break.