Age of Heroes (Age of Heroes Chronicles)

Chapter 33: Skinripper bandits (1)

11 Seedmonth 1007 AF Seedmonth

Arial and his friends had informed their teachers as to why they wouldn't be attending their classes, who had wished them luck and urged them to be cautious.

They began preparing their supplies and arms.

Helia went to the Distribution Tower to collect any items they might find useful.

Kyle chose their horses from the stables, while Lisa and Arial planned how best to venture to the mines of Rodan.

The quest describe that the bandits has taken refuge near the mines in Rodan area.

So, it becomes important to know the location.

They sat in the Quest Room, where information from across the lands was carried by ravens, owls and falcons.

To their left sat a group of Senior Knights explaining strategies to their companions, while in the center of the room a Knight Brother was examining weapons and armor.

There were some students yelling about a botched quest, but they were left to argue. Students handled their own business at the Academy.

Attendants scurried around the room, bringing the knights whatever they needed, mostly maps and news from birds.

They scuttle all around going to the other rooms and bringing the letters, parchment, sealed letters.

The Keepers of Birds, they're called.

Dark whispers and dark words, Arial mused. He had seen the birds during his years of self-imprisonment in Vern Empire.

They had come from all over, fleeing from the stench of blood or the fires of war.

He would tie a parchment of letter in the bird legs, question like, "How is the situation?" and send the birds to wander sometimes weeks, sometimes months and sometimes years and sometimes he got an answer.

Sometimes not.

And when he does get news, it will be stories of slaughter of humankind, massive massacre and random killings.

Dark whispers, dark words, he muttered silently.

"We'll have to go across here," Lisa insisted, bringing Arial back to their conversation.

"It'd take too long to go across the forest," Arial said, concentrating on the map sprawled across the table.

"They may have already gone."

The Skinripper Bandits. A group of forty hardened criminals. At least that was their current information; they had no way of telling if the group was increasing or decreasing.

They were named due to their gruesome way of killing.

After raiding villages and cities, they would kidnap random citizens and peel the skin from their bodies, and lay it beside the oozing corpse.

Cruel and evil. Helia and Kyle were panic-stricken when they heard the story.

No, they were more than just panic stricken

Helia and Kyle was trembling in fear when they hear the story, Helia was having a cold sweat because when she read about the past atrocities that these bandits do, she almost puke.

Arial would also puke in the past if he read that some of them even eat humans. Even the Demon Lords no matter how cruel do not eat human flesh.

"Then where should we go?" asked Lisa, scratching her chin.

"Argan Bridge?" Arial suggested.

They looked at the map again and shook their heads. The bridge was too long, and from the information they had received, the area was flooded.

"I guess it has to be Bleeding Rock. Then on to the Shire." It was the longer route but it is the only route available.

"And if they've moved on before we get there?" Lisa asked.

"Then we chase them."

"I guess we should be prepared for trouble with a hard quest," she sighed.

They were still discussing their journey an hour later when Helia and Kyle joined them in the Quest Room.

"We've got the supplies, and Kyle has chosen some horses," said Helia, panting slightly.

"We ran around the towers getting permission and signing things, then Nosy Chuck came along and -" Kyle's rant was cut off by Lisa holding up her hand.

"Yeah, we get it, you've been working hard."

"So which way will we be going?" asked Helia, sitting beside them at the table. Arial explained their route, and Helia and Kyle listened intently.

"Wait," said Kyle, "does this mean we can stop by Danoba?"

Lisa's face lit up. Arial himself had wanted to visit their home city for a while, and the journey would give them the perfect opportunity.

"No," said Arial.

"What? Why not?" Kyle's face fell.

"We'll waste too much time if we stop by."

"Don't you miss your parents?" Kyle's voice was tinged with disappointment.

"I do. And that's why we're not stopping."

"What do you mean?" Helia asked.

"Think about it. How long do you think it'll take to reach the rank of Knight Brother? If we go back and see them, we'll want to keep going back. We won't want to return to the Academy," Arial looked at Kyle and Lisa.

"I know you probably miss your parents more than I do. I understand. You're in a strange place, and you're still children."

"Then why did you ask us to follow you?" Kyle could no longer control his temper, and grabbed Arial's shirt.

"Because the world won't fight fair," said Arial calmly, pulling his shirt back. "Because no matter how much you scream or cry, the world doesn't care, and I need you to understand that. Because if you understand it too late, nothing will matter. That's why. Do you love your parents?"

"Of course, I do," Kyle said weakly.

"Then learn and grow strong. Only then can you protect them."

Lisa sat with her hands covering her face, sniffing softly. Arial and Kyle looked at each other for a moment.

"I'm sorry," they said at the same time, and smiled awkwardly.

Kyle was upset, and Arial knew he just needed to vent his frustration. But Arial knew what he was fighting for, and it kept him going. If he failed, so did humanity.

But Lisa and Kyle they just follow him, because he is their friends. Arial brought them because it's an opportunity, but they need to recognize that by themselves.

The four friends agreed to go by Bleeding Rock. The Academy had given them a budget of ten gold coins to see them through the quest. After that, it was up to them.

"Okay, then we depart at dawn," said Arial. "We will meet in the entrance."

After dinner in the Grand Hall, they each returned to their dormitories to get a full night of sleep before their departure the following morning.

Many of the Senior Knights offered their prayers and wished them luck as they passed.

That night Arial lay in bed, going over everything in his head. Many things had happened that day.

Many things would happen the next. The new day would be a chance for him to see if his efforts had been worth it.

Let the Light guide us to the way of fortune, he prayed.

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