|
|
Post by Lana Holden on Oct 4, 2007 18:29:10 GMT -5
Lana's horse, Blackfeather, trotted steadily and quietly through the forest. They had been traveling for nearly a day after leaving Solace, and were now somewhere in between Flotsam and Tarsis. Once arriving in Tarsis, Lana planned to visit her family and get out of the city as quickly as possible. Adventure was her life, not staying at home.
What Lana didn't realize was that someone, or something, was watching her from within the brush. A band of goblin thieves, intent upon killing Lana and stealing her possessions, waiting for the signal from their goblin leader to attack. And in a few minutes they did just that.
With several guttural battle cries, the little foes leaped forward and grasped Blackfeather's reins, scaring the horse out of his witts. Gasping, Lana drew her sword and made a rough swipe at one of the creatures. Its severed head rolled slowly away from the melee, and Lana fixed her attention upon the other four goblin foes. But they were closing in on her, slowly . . .
|
|
|
|
Post by Xander Hughes on Oct 4, 2007 19:11:51 GMT -5
Lightfoot trotted along, head down, nearing exhaustion. Xander felt horrible, no terrible, for pushing his beloved mare so hard. With a sigh, Xander dismounted and rubbed his tired mare's neck, whispering soft words to her. He needed to reach Solace by nightfall; it was a very urgent matter. He swiftly withdrew a carrot from his bag and fed it to his steed, watching her gobble it up hungrily. "Come on, girl. There's not that much farther to go."
It was then that Xander heard the clash of steel. He hadn't expected anyone else to be around, least of all a fight of some sort. With a muttered curse, Xander spun around to see what in the blazes was going on. The sounds appeared to be coming from directly behind him, past a grove of trees. "Stay here, Lightfoot." Xander trusted his horse. He had no need to tie her up; she never left him, lest he told her to stay put. Lightfoot bobbed her head, seemingly in agreement.
Drawing his father's sword, Xander crept foward and dashed through the grove. Goblins, 4 alive and one dead, a young horse, and a female rider were fighting one another in the clearing. The goblins appeared to be attacking the young female. Perhaps they were trying to kill her and steal from her, or worse . . .
Raising a battle cry, Xander rushed foward and cut down a goblin in one well trained stroke. With a twirl, he caught another in the gut with the butt of his sword, and rammed the blade into another goblin's head, killing it instantly. Only two more remained. The one he had winded was hunched over, howling in pain and grasping his stomache. Xander finished him off easily. The other proved more difficult; he was obviously the lead goblin. But after a few moments Xander slayed him as well with one smooth thrust through the chest. The young warrior quickly wiped the goblin blood from his sword, sheathed it, and looked up to help the lady.
"Are you all right? Nothing broken or injured?" he inquired with a worried expression upon his sweat stained face.
|
|
|
|
Post by Lana Holden on Oct 4, 2007 19:16:32 GMT -5
Lana watched in amazement as a young warrior bounded through the foliage and cut down the four goblin foes almost instantly. Her baffled stare soon turned to one of arrogant anger, though. She dismounted Blackfeather, sheathed her sword, and turned to confront the stranger.
"What do you think you're doing?! I had that fight perfectly under control! One more minute and I would have finished them all off. I am well trained in the use of a sword you know! What is it with you men and saving the lives of countless women? We can take care of our selves for gods' sake!" she cried. She wasn't necessarily mad at Xander. Probably if he hadn't showed up she would be lying dead in a ditch somewhere. But she couldn't allow him to see that side of her; she had to look tough.
"I'm Lana. Lana Holden." Her mood suddenly changed and she extended a sweaty palm to the man. With a smile on her dirt streaked face, she said, "And do I address a warrior or a knight, good sir?" He sure looked like a knight, with his stature and polite attitude, but he didn't wear the armor of a knight.
|
|
|
|
Post by Xander Hughes on Oct 4, 2007 19:20:42 GMT -5
Xander was taken aback by her sudden attitude toward him, but she sooned seemed to cheer up. Probably mood swings, he thought. He gladly accepted her handshake, which was firm like that of a warrior. Perhaps she was correct about women. Maybe they weren't always damsels in distress.
"I'm sorry if I offended you, Mistress Lana. There was no offense meant in my words," said Xander. My name is Alexander Hughes, a warrior mercenary. I am usually known as Xander." He let his hand drop to his side and pondered what Lana would be doing here; in the middle of nowhere nearly. "And what are you doing here, in the forest? Are you traveling to Solace, perhaps, or south?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Lana Holden on Oct 4, 2007 19:24:17 GMT -5
Lana really like this man. He seemed incredibly kind. Maybe he had grown up among knights, for he sure acted like a knight. "No offense taken. It's nice to meet you, Xander Hughes." She listened to his question and pondered an answer for a moment. If she told him that she was going south, he would probably ask why, and then she would be forced to tell him that she was going home for a visit, which sounded very childish. But if she told him she was going to Solace, that would mean trouble if he was going to Solace as well. She truly didn't want to go back to Solace again . . .
"I'm going south, to Tarsis. I hope to visit my family briefly and tell them of my travels before heading north once more. I own a home in Ergoth, which is where I'm headed after Tarsis hopefully . . ."
|
|
|
|
Post by Xander Hughes on Oct 5, 2007 11:33:53 GMT -5
Hmm . . . so the lady lived in Ergoth, and she was going south to Tarsis. Xander thought this statement over for a while, pondering an answer. "Well, I was going to Solace, for a meeting . . . but I'm sure it would be best if I accompany you. There will be plenty more goblins and other rigabands where they come from, and the road to Tarsis is littered with plenty of criminals and beasts alike. I would want you to be hurt, Mistress Lana." He smiled and whistled to signal it all right for Lightfoot to come into view.
His mare trotted happily into the clearing, sniffing once at the corpse of a dead goblin before coming to Xander's side.
"I have a horse as well, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem. This is Lightfoot." He hoped Lana would allow him to accompany her. It was against his code to let a lady go about by herself, when danger could be waiting for her around any corner. He had grown up among Solamnics, and it was his father that had influenced him to be loyal and help women whenever possible.
|
|
|
|
Post by Lana Holden on Oct 19, 2007 22:51:31 GMT -5
Lana smiled at first, but the smile quickly vanished and was immediately replaced by a frown. "That's very kind of you, Xander, but I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I don't need company. I'm a great swordswoman, and I actually know what I'm doing," she hadn't meant this as a rude comment, and suddenly realized her mistake. "I'm sorry. That didn't come out the way I had meant for it to. I meant that I can take care of myself and don't need help from the likes of you. No, that's not what I meant either. Ugh!"
Lana spun around and minlessly patted Blackfeather on the neck. Once she had regained herself, she turned back around and said, "You know what I mean. Now, I must be going. There is still quite a ways to Tarsis. If you won't mind my leaving, Sir Hughes," mounted Blackfeather, she grasped the reins and made her way away from Xander.
|
|
|
|
Post by Xander Hughes on Oct 20, 2007 11:55:00 GMT -5
Xander mounted Lightfoot as well and followed after Lana and Blackfeather. He grasped Blackfeather's reins and pulled Lana and her horse to a stop. "Lana, you may not understand this, but it is against my code to let you go off on your own. There could be who knows what out there, and I don't want an innocent lady hurt. I know I may sound like a sap, but I did grow up in Solamnia, and I honor their code."
His face split into a smile, and Xander added, "Besides, I can always go back to Solace later. I've been wanting to visit Tarsis for a while. I'm not always a good traveling companion, though." He hoped that she would listen to him, and not be so prideful . . . Goblins where everywhere nowadays, and it just wasn't safe to travel alone.
|
|
