Heirs of Hyarch

"Overall, it went well. She's a quick learner," Hamond concluded.

He had just finished up with his time teaching Jylania. They'd gone over a few spells, with the girl picking up on a couple of them readily. The others had been a bit too hard to grasp, but there was only so much you could accomplish in a few hours.

"I could've told you that," Nela said, "So, where's Sedat then?"

"Still up in the room," Hamond said, "I get the feeling she doesn't like having to climb up and down the stairs." Having legs that were somewhat birdlike didn't make it easy, and the wings only added to the problem.

"So I have to go back after just having been up there to look in on the boy. Great." Nela scowled, shifting in her chair. "I swear, if you end up getting the easier end of this..."

"I don't think it's a competition," Hamond noted, "The truth is, that may be-"

The door to the Rider's Rest swung open, and armed men began to enter.

It took Hamond just a brief moment to recover from the surprise, but by then over a hex of them had made it inside. More were outside too, making it clear fighting their way out wouldn't be easy. They could try to talk their way out, but there was one very clear problem with that solution.

The men all wore the uniforms of the royal knights, the same as those they'd seen at the gate.

So much for Syrkonel paying the knights to look the other way, if he was even to be believed. Right now, it certainly looked like someone couldn't be trusted, and it hardly mattered who was responsible. What mattered was getting out of this alive and unhurt.

"Can we help you?" Hamond asked.

Aside from a couple of glances in his direction, the knights ignored his question. "Spread out and search the place," one of them ordered.

"How about you don't?" Nela spoke up.

"How about I cut off your pointy-eared head and shove it up your arse?" one of the knights threatened back, waving a blade in her direction.

"Kelloch, hold your tongue," another snapped, "She may only be an elf, but we do have to hold standards as knights of the Ruby Crown."

Hamond had seen rocks that were more subtle. More polite too, if one took a while to think about it. "Again, can we help you?" he repeated, well aware that his next words might have to be calling on a spell.

"You can yield to us, since your group failed to pay the gate tax and entered the city illegally. Don't try to deny it. We'll be taking you in for questioning."

Hamond knew what torment and suffering that meant all too well. He was not about to put himself or Nela through such an interrogation if it could be helped. With Jylania, Sedat, and Zerendel also likely to face the same...no, there was only one way out now.

"I must refuse," he said, holding back a familiar spike of fear in his gut. Now was not the time for that, he reminded himself/

"You act like you have a choice. Which you do, I suppose, if you don't mind dying today."

"But do you?" Hamond answered with his own question. "Ventus fugit."

A burst of air sent the main group of knights tumbling over, only prevented from being pushed out the door or into the walls by the bodies of their fellows bracing them. It bought them a bit of time, but it was not nearly enough to end the threat on its own. Fortunately for him, and unfortunately for the knights, Hamond wasn't finished.

"Tetra lithoistos." Four stone spikes shot forward. Two of them found gaps in their armor, piercing deep. The other pair bounced off, frustrating Hamond - he was normally better at aiming than that.

"Doroneroi," he heard behind him as Nela began to move against the knights that been outside the range of his spells. Hamond hoped she could handle those few while he dealt with the rest. What was most important was keeping the other knights outside from entering. One was already striding in, but that actually worked in his favor.

"Ventus decipit," Hamond spoke, calling on a different spell. The knight in the doorway paused as wind rose around him, lifting him into the air to spin helplessly. It wouldn't last forever, but it should keep the entrance blocked off from further reinforcements.

"Help me!" the man shouted uselessly as he spun. Now all that was left was to take care of the remaining knights in here.

A pained grunt behind him told Hamond he wouldn't get the chance. "Stop or she dies!"

Hamond spun to see Nela laid out stunned on the ground, a knight with a sword at her throat. Judging from the pair of men laying beside her, she had put up a fight in her own way, but it hadn't been enough.

What made him think that he ought to gamble on Nela being able to fight off three men at the same time? It had been a stupid gamble, and now all of them would suffer. Worst off, Edeline and Myronel would have no idea what had happened. They might even...fall right into a trap if the knights could remain here to wait on them.

He had failed, so, so badly. For once, he should've listened to his fear. If they had run upstairs and barricaded themselves in one of the rooms, maybe they could have held out. Aether, this had happened so fast...what did he do now?

"Bind them and gag them," one of the knights said, "And get someone upstairs. I think I heard a sound up there."

No, they couldn't be allowed to get to the girls, no matter what it took. "Ventus fugit!" The spell knocked the man standing over Nela away. Hamond immediately sprinted over, kneeling beside Nela to check her.

While he hardly possessed her knowledge of healing, Hamond knew enough to see that Nela was only half-conscious, a nasty welt on her forehead from where the knight had somehow struck her. She was dazed, and it would take more than a few moments for her to recover. That was precious time they didn't have.

He hoped Edeline would appreciate his refusal to surrender, and he hoped Sedat and Jylania would know to run for it. Either way, Hamond was going to give the knights a final battle they wouldn't soon forget. "Tetra lithoistos!"

This time he only targeted two of the knights, with two missiles for each. They went down in an instant, even as the others closed in. "Ventus fugit!" This sent a few of the knights reeling, but it was too late to catch all of them. A second later, a sword came in from the side, coming to a stop less than a finger's length from his neck.

Hamond opened his mouth, ready to cast one final spell.

A figure tumbled down the inn's stairs with a deafening clatter.

Everyone flinched, Hamond and the knights alike. He looked over to see it was the body of one of the knights, dead beyond any question. There was also no question, at least to Hamond, as to who was responsible.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Sedat descended the stairs with wings spread as much as the confines of the inn let her.

"What in Aether's blood?" The knights started to back away, disturbed at the sight.

Sedat regarded them all for a moment, then screamed. Powerfully loud, it held more the cry of a beast than the voice of a man or woman. Hamond found himself fearing that Sedat had lost herself to her changed body's instincts.

The knights all turned and ran for the door. The problem being that the knight caught in Hamond's earlier spell was still there, blocking the way in...or out. There was no other escape from the inn left to them, and now they would have face Sedat's fury.

And she wouldn't be alone either. "Tetra lithoistos!" Hamond next spell took down the remaining knights in the inn, finding gaps in the back of their armor. He then turned his attention to the door, trying to see past the knight trapped in the doorway. If there were more knights waiting outside, though, he couldn't see them.

That didn't mean they weren't waiting for an opportunity to charge in. "Tetra lithoistos," he muttered, sending one final barrage of missiles to kill the trapped knight. He let the spell holding the knight's body fade, with yet another clattering sound as it fell to the ground. Maybe that would be enough to intimidate any men out there.

Right now, he needed to see to Nela. "Are you feeling alright?" he asked, once again kneeling down beside her.

"Been...better," she managed to say, her gaze still unfocused. She tried to sit up, only to groan and slump over on her side. "Shit. Why's...the room's twisted?"

So she wasn't going to be doing anything anytime soon. "Just stay there and rest for a while," Hamond told Nela, rising to his feet.

"Guess that elf man shouldn't have trusted those knights," Sedat said, approaching. She seemed back to her usual self, a good sign.

"You sure you're fine too?" Hamond had to know. This would be the worst possible time for Sedat to lose control of herself.

"A bit odd, but good, I think." Sedat replied, "Not sure how I did that. Maybe I can control when I get bird headed a little now."

That would be nice if true, but Hamond wasn't about to try and test it. "Can you watch Nela? I need to get the door sealed." It was probably best to drag a table in front of it too, just for the sake of safety.

"Might want to go check on Jylania first. Looked really scared when that man came up."

Already about to push the inn's door closed, Hamond narrowed his eyes at Sedat's suggestion. That likely meant that Sedat had gone to try to talk to Jylania again, despite him cautioning her against that with all the insults. That could be dealt with later though, and Sedat had a point besides. Jylania and also Zerendel needed a reassurance that everything was fine.

Of course, Nela was still not well enough to go climbing upstairs. "Keep watch, and yell if anyone comes through the door." Hamond settled for quickly wedging a chair against the door. If the other two returned, well, they'd deal with it then. This shouldn't take long anyway.

Once up there, Hamond pulled open the first room. Zerendel was sitting on the bed, looking worried. "What was all that noise? I heard shouts and screams and stuff. Did those men from before come back?"

"It was..." Hamond had to stop himself. How did he explain this without upsetting the boy? No, best to be honest. "It was the men, but we dealt with them."

"Good." The boy lowered himself down to the floor. "I didn't want to hide under the bed again for another whole day."

It would've been a lot worse than that. Still, it would good to see the knight who'd been up here hadn't gotten this far. Now, it just left Jylania to check on. With a nod, Hamond closed the door and moved to the next room.

Hamond froze the moment he saw into the room. The room's window was wide open, and a length of rope hung out of it, one end tied to the bed. There was no sign of Jylania, and there was no one else who could have gotten in here to have tied that rope off. It left just one conclusion that Hamond could reach.

Jylania, fearing the knights, had fled out into the city of Melyn.

Aether, what was he going to tell Nela now?