Louresa heard the clinking of chainmail and clop of horse hooves long before they even appeared in vision. She’d no doubt in her mind that one of the riders heard them too; shortly after the other group came into earshot, they increased their own pace.

  “They’ll catch up in a bit. And no, I wouldn’t be saying this if I thought we could outrun them,” Louresa said, “I don’t know how many there are or what weapons they have.”

  Clair stared at Louresa for a moment, then at Doru. “I suppose I’m protecting him then. Alright, what are we doing? I’ll trust whatever you say.”

  Louresa blinked rapidly and bit her finger, then responded. “Must be the end of the world if you’re agreeing that easy. Well, here’s the idea. At least one of them has decent hearing so we can’t just hide off to the side of the road. I need you two“ -she pointed at Clair and Doru- “to make lots of noise in the brush. Breath like you’re panicked, whisper to each other, things like that. Just don’t expose yourselves. That’s all I need, alright? I’ve got the rest.”

  Clair eyed Louresa with a slight frown on her face. “We’re bait then. Me and the little one? Great. I’m sure we’ll be able to take on trained horsemen no problem, it’ll be a cakewalk.” Clair nonetheless picked up Doru in one arm and grabbed Boog’s reins. “If I have to sit in the tall grass with a bunch of insects crawling over me and we don’t survive anyways I’m going to curse you. Forever.” She walked from the path into the surrounding vegetation and disappeared from sight.

  Louresa grabbed some of the dark black wet dirt and rubbed it on her armor, working it into the polished steel. She winced at the action and whispered to herself. “Never thought I’d see the day I’d have to do this. Gods above, it actually hurts.” She grabbed her helmet from her head, staring at its eyeslits. It seemed to stare back at her with open sadness, begging for mercy. It found none.

  The clacking of the horses got closer, and the breathing of their riders quickly became audible. Louresa took a long breath and held it, then hid herself in the dense foliage of the forest. The rhythmic pumping in her chest slowed to a crawl and her mind came to a screeching halt. She lay still in the undergrowth, unblinking and unmoving.

  Clair sat rigidly with Doru held securely in her lap. Her arms covered him, tensed and shaking. She looked to the sky and sighed. “Could be my last time seeing the sun. That’d be horrid, wouldn’t it?” The cat man patted her arm and looked up to her, and she down at him. His eyes asked a question, though it was one she didn’t quite understand. “You know, the whole ‘I’m cute so calm down’ thing doesn’t work. It’s like having a baby in your arms in the middle of a war zone. At the very least you could pretend to be threatening.” Doru rolled his eyes and wiggled. Clair stared for a moment then realized why he tapped her arms; she released her hold and he extracted himself from her grasp. He settled down next to her but sat faced opposite the direction of the road. His ears, rotund circular masses of slimy white flesh that tapered to round points stood upright. Clair’s mouth formed an O shape at the sight She reached to touch them but stopped herself; Doru very clearly needed his focus. His ears twitched as he listened, eyes squeezed shut.

  Doru cried out suddenly and Clair jumped from her seat. It sounded to her like a babe’s cry, loud and keening, a sharp constant in the hot air. The sun passed its zenith when the horses arrived at the group’s location. Hot sweat dripped down Clair’s face, leaving her sticky and her gambeson soaked. The horseman finally came into her own earshot and she swallowed hard, turning to the little creature below her. “Shh, it’s ok, be silent now. Don’t cry! Please don’t cry!”

  Doru was, not for the first time since he joined the women’s group, ashamed. Pretending to be a child in distress was not something he at any point in time thought he would be doing. He was, after all, a soldier now, and though the ruse was admittedly clever, he still disliked it. Actions such as the one he undertook were for the people he was supposed to protect. Free meals and riches my arse, if I don’t get my shot at some honor soon I’m going to lose it.

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  He heard the distant conversation of the horse riders start and stopped his act. Clair looked at him with wide eyes and he held his hand up; the illusion wouldn’t become more effective by his continued wail nor her continued speech. Their next actions depended on what the enemy decided to do.

  His ears twitched and the first snippet of dialogue flowed into them. “They ‘ave a child with them. I say we take them back to camp. At least one has to be worth something.” A man’s voice. It was rough and grated against his ears.

  The other was that of a woman. “Aye, sir, but our orders were to kill whoever we found.” A sword unsheathed from its scabbard. “If you can’t do it then I’d be happy to.”

  “Shit, woman, what is wrong with you? I know I’m messed in the head but you’re a real bloody nutcase.” The sounds of talking died down for a moment and that of rustled foliage took over. “And put that damn thing away! If I wanted you to have it out I would’ve told you.” The sword rasped as it slid back into its sheath.

  The footsteps grew louder and Doru drew a javelin in preparation. It was to be his first taste of real combat, and he would relish every second of it.

  Before he could make ready his throw, however, Clair spoke. “Stop! Whoever you are! We aren’t armed and we don’t have any weapons.” She looked at Doru and put a finger to her lips. “It’s just me and my child and my mule.” The rustling abruptly halted and Doru stood completely still.

  The reply came muted by the foliage from the man who first spoke earlier. “Prove it. Come out with your child in your arms and we’ll believe you.”

  Doru’s nose twitched. He knew what was to come next. He saw Clair remove her helmet and unstrapped his quiver from his shoulder. She reached down and picked him up. He couldn’t see anything when pressed against her and felt uneasy but did not attempt to wriggle out of her grasp. He felt her step forwards and tensed up in preparation to be struck. This won’t work. Surely they won’t fall for it. Really, a lone woman and her child? Who’d believe that?

  The man spoke. His voice transformed from its previously gravelly tone to a gentler, more concerned one. Ah. Someone would, indeed, fall for it. “Stop there lass. I’ll ask one more time, are you sure it’s just you and the babe? I won’t hold it against you if you hid another little one further away. You don’t want to leave anyone behind, do you?” Doru reached out for a javelin with his tail, inching his way to the quiver through the bushes.

  Clair glanced down at Doru and tapped his back. His tail stopped and he softly let it fall to the ground. She swallowed, voice shaking with real nerve as she responded. “Y-yes, It’s just us. Please don’t hurt my son, he’s just a boy.”

  An armored figure, that of the man, stepped out from the woods with his hands raised. “We won’t hurt you.” He unbuckled his belt and let it fall to the ground, then lowered the chainmail that covered his lower face. “Look, I’ve dropped me sword and me armor. I’m not undead, I’m a man, and this might be the only chance you get to leave this area alive.”

  A sharp, loud inhale sounded from the man’s right. Doru turned just as the assault started. Louresa shot out of the undergrowth and delivered a mail-gauntleted fist to the mans unarmored face then turned and backhanded an unknown figure, knocking it to the ground with a crunch. A third figure, one that had not spoken, backpedaled, stumbling over his own feet and falling on his rear. Louresa pivoted, falling to the ground on top of it and grabbing its throat. The form struggled and kicked against her brutish strength, tears slipping from its eyes. Doru cringed as the sounds of crackling cartilage filled the air, her press so strong she could very well break bone with ease. It stopped moving, and she stood back up.

  Doru stared in a mixture of awe and horror. Louresa’s image in his mind was that of a monster, one far too quick for all its horrible strength. She turned to them and smiled happily. “Alright! That was a textbook surprise attack. Didn’t even get the chance to draw a weapon and attack me.” Louresa dusted her hands off and motioned to the still figures on the ground. Her companions remained still, and she looked at them with a raised eyebrow. “What are you two waiting for? Get some rope and tie them up. We just got ourselves our first paycheck.”

  “And you’re… you’re sure none of them are dead?” Clair stammered.

  Louresa thought for a moment. “Probably. It wouldn’t do to kill someone we might be able to ransom off.”