The unusual encounter ended in an equally unusual manner. Timber Gain accepted his loss, and I retracted my charged bolts. As I walked back over to my cheering daughter, I saw Flora as well, who was awkwardly clapping. I could see that all of Timber’s subordinates were surprised to see their leader lose and a few were not so accepting. One of them even tried to argue that I should have lost, stating that Tasha had interfered earlier. However, Timber Gain shut that down quickly. Timber was the one who had suddenly made a proposal in the middle of our duel and he didn’t consider what Tasha had done to be an attack. Surprisingly, that was all it took, and the rest of the bandits had no complaints. Timber motioned for me to follow him back to the wagon so that he could give me my prize and I told Tasha and Flora to stay where they were. On the way there, a couple of Timber’s men even congratulated me for winning.

  “Other than those sapphire earrings, do you recall what else those same merchants had?” Timber asked his subordinate, the guard with the spear who first called out to us. The guard took a closer look, and then pointed to a couple other boxes in the wagon. One was much larger than the other, and although they looked relatively nice, the boxes were wooden, and not velvet. Timber took the boxes out of the wagon.

  “Can you tell me more about those merchants?” I asked.

  “Well, you can ask me whatever you want about them, but there isn’t much I can tell you, Braith,” Timber responded.

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “Well…ahem, I wasn’t exactly present when they came through here.” I raised an eyebrow in slight confusion. “I had a bit too much to drink the day before. Ah, but, Alder here should know more.” Timber motioned to the guard with the spear. Alder gave a nod.

  “How many were there, and how were they traveling?” Alder paused to recall.

  “They had two carriages, three wagons and eight horses.”

  “And how many people? Also, did any of them wear a green hat?”

  “...I’m not sure.”

  “You don’t remember?” I asked.

  “...I don’t really know because we didn’t check how many people were in each carriage.”

  “You didn’t?” Timber asked. I was surprised to see that Timber was surprised.

  “No, boss. We wanted to make sure of the number because of the toll, but they didn’t want that.” I thought that hardly seemed sufficient for them to just give up on. “So, they offered to pay the toll as if there were eight people in each carriage. There was no way they could have fit that many people in each one, so after asking to make sure they wanted to pay that much, we just let it go.” I looked at Timber to see how we would react.

  “It appears quite the suspicious group may have come on through. Do you at least recall how many people you did see?” Timber asked.

  “...I think it was eight people, excluding any people who may have been inside the carriages.”

  “I see. Is there anything you want to ask, Braith?” Timber asked me. I thought for a moment.

  “Do you remember exactly when they came through here?”

  “I think it was about two weeks ago.” I then went to open the larger of the two boxes. It contained scarves. I then opened the smaller box, which contained a silver necklace.

  “Is there a particular reason why you bought these from them?” I asked.

  “No, they gave us those items instead of paying the toll. The necklace is good quality silver and the scarves were made of silk. Including the sapphire earrings, it definitely should have covered the toll.”

  “I wouldn’t say I’m an expert appraiser, but I believe those items are authentic,” Timber added on. I didn’t doubt the authenticity. I closed up the boxes.

  “And this is all you got from them?”

  “Yes,” Alder replied.

  “Isn’t there anything else unusual or specific you remember about them?” I asked. Alder pondered for a moment.

  “They didn’t seem to be merchants with the Merchants’ Guild.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “They told us they were merchants but when we asked them to show their memberships, they didn’t.” Was this a different group altogether? Or, is it them, but they thought it would be too risky to show the stolen membership to these bandits?

  “You seem a bit confused, Braith,” Timber said, interjecting my train of thought. “Not all merchants are with the Merchants’ Guild. For example, they may have come from Quidic.” I didn’t know what or where Quidic was, but that wasn’t the most important thing at the moment.

  “Do merchants from the Merchants’ Guild come by here frequently?” I asked Timber.

  “Relatively frequently. I’d say probably at least two or three different merchant caravans come by every month.”

  “And merchants that are not from the Merchants’ Guild?”

  “Maybe once every two months or so.”

  “Is it usually the same merchants, in either case?”

  “Usually.”

  “And you didn’t recognize the group that came through at all?” I asked, looking at Alder.

  “No. Also…I asked if any of them were mercenaries, and they said they were just guards.”

  “That is very rare for merchants with the Merchants’ Guild, but not so for merchants from Quidic,” Timber explained to me.

  “I see…” I spoke slowly as I carefully collected all the information in my head. After a few moments of silence, Timber finally spoke up.

  “Is there anything else?” Timber asked. I didn’t really have anything else to ask about this mystery group, but, there was still one more thing that was bothering me.

  “Timber, may I speak to you alone?” At first, Timber seemed to want to ask why, but then he just waved away at Alder.

  “...Alder, please leave us for a moment.” Alder obeyed and walked away to rejoin some of the rest of the bandits. When he was out of earshot, I continued speaking to Timber, almost whispering my words.

  “Timber, could you explain to me what was up with that duel?” Timber looked back at me casually.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You lost really easily.”

  “...it did look like that in the end.” I tried very hard to read Timber’s expression. Was it just a fluke? Did I catch him off guard? Did he let me win? How did things just end up like that? I wanted to know without asking him outright, but I couldn’t glean the answer from his face.

  “Are you upset with the outcome?” I tried to ask somewhat provocatively, hoping that this might give me a better idea of what was going on Timber’s mind.

  “I would be lying if I said I didn’t expect to win. However, a loss is a loss. I simply need to accept that and move on.”

  “Is that all you have to say?” I pressed further. We stared at each other intently.

  “Is there something that you are expecting me to say?” Timber did not break his gaze.

  “Oh, well…I just thought you might have had something to say about the sudden turnaround.” We continued to stare at each other. Silence continued to drag on. Suddenly, Timber smiled.

  “You aren’t Battle-Hardened, are you, Braith?” I wasn’t expecting the question, but I tried to not let that show on my face.

  “I would say…I’m probably about as Battle-Hardened as you, Timber.” Timber let out a small, knowing laugh.

  “I don’t know how you managed to figure me out, Braith, but I’m even more impressed at how you pulled off that last move.” I pretended to look like I knew what Timber was talking about.

  “Let’s just say that my observations told me what I needed to know,” I responded vaguely. Timber nodded.

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  “Yes, I thought I was the one paying close attention, but you still managed to do me one better.”

  “Well, I would also say I got quite lucky.” I was still trying to figure out what Timber thought I figured out, but this statement of mine was completely honest.

  “No, whatever you want to call it, you beat me fair and square. Although, I do hope you don’t go spreading around what you figured out to others. Not that I can hold you to that or anything.” I still had no idea what he was talking about.

  “Do you really think I would just promise you something like that?”

  “Well, like I said, it’s just a hope. Anyways, even if others know, I don’t think they could do exactly what you did. Do you think you could tell me what exactly you did?” I changed my expression to that of bemusement. “Right, of course not.”

  “Alright, enough about all of that,” I began, not sure I could keep pretending about whatever the heck he was going on about. “Timber, my daughter is still going to want to turn all of you guys over to the authorities.” I still whispered, but my tone was serious now. I saw Tasha seemed to be controlling herself at the moment, but I knew what her personality was like. Timber also looked at me seriously now.

  “From the way you say that…are you implying that you would be willing to seek an alternative?”

  “Well, first of all, do you think you could beat us?” I asked. Timber’s eyes seemed to flash, as if simulating the battle in his head.

  “Honestly, I would probably just give the order to retreat.”

  “You’d have to abandon all of your supplies if you do that. I also doubt most of you would actually get away.” I responded matter-of-factly.

  “Braith…I hope you do not force me to take drastic action.”

  “...You and your men are completely different from a lot of the other…armed men we have faced before. However, I don’t really know anything about you all. I don’t personally feel the need to protect strangers from getting robbed, but at the same time, I don’t want to leave a dangerous group around if I have the opportunity to stop them.”

  “Yes, we rob people. If you leave us alone, we will continue to rob people.” Not really a strong start, Timber. “But, we are only after some of their possessions. We never leave them stripped or completely without any money, and we do not kill. I cannot be completely sure of what sort of other groups you have encountered in your travels, but I- we are honourable bandits.”

  “Something like that…probably won’t be enough to convince Tasha. Also, that toll you charge…that doesn’t seem very reasonable to me.”

  “About that…that’s mainly because we rob people transporting goods. If it was just someone traveling by foot we would probably just let them by. Also, we give discounts to members of the Merchants’ Guild or Mercenaries’ Guild.”

  “Are you saying those guilds know you’re here and they just leave you be?” I asked, starting to more seriously doubt Timber’s words.

  “I’m not saying we have any kind of official agreement with either of them. However, try to see it like this. The Outlands, especially this area, have been constantly plagued by bandits. Even back when I was a mercenary, for a lot of travelers, you wouldn’t necessarily hire enough guards to fight off all the bandits, especially if you were traveling a long distance. You would hire just enough to prevent bandits from robbing you blind. And the guards you have on hand were used for negotiating with bandits, since most of them are just after money. Most of them don’t want to take huge risks for a bit more coin. Especially since bounties would be issued against them if they ended up killing the wrong target.” Timber’s words…they made some sense to me. Actually, they were quite convincing arguments, but that also made me start to doubt him even more.

  “That’s quite the explanation to hear from a bandit.”

  “As I said, I wasn’t always a bandit.”

  “It’s also quite the explanation to hear from a former mercenary.”

  “I didn’t exactly have the typical upbringing for mercenaries. Unlike most, my family was…relatively well off and I had the opportunity to receive quite a bit of schooling.” Timber definitely seemed far cleverer than the stereotypical bandit, but that still didn’t mean I automatically believed his explanation.

  “I understand that you are probably not as dangerous as other criminals, but I still don’t see why we don’t just take you all down when the opportunity arises.” Timber let out a slightly annoyed sigh.

  “...Braith, even if you could do that, I don’t think you would. Or, at least, even if you defeat us all, I don’t think you would drag all of us away to be arrested.”

  “Oh, why do you say that?” I asked, wondering about Timber’s sudden shift.

  “There are simply too many of us. How would you transport all of us with just the three of you?” To be honest, I knew that would be an issue and I hadn’t bothered to think of a good solution. Just like Timber said, I didn’t really plan to do something as troublesome as that. “Also, even if you could drag all of us to Deimos, I don’t think they would even imprison all of us.”

  “Why not?”

  “It’s bothersome for them as well. Deimos is the largest city in the Outlands, but it’s not like they have a huge prison with a ton of empty prison cells. From what I recall, parts of Deimos are hardly any less lawless than the outside of the city. Also, would it even be worth turning in bandits without bounties?”

  “Without bounties? None of you?”

  “As I said, banditry is tolerated up to a certain point. We have not crossed that point, and if we had, believe me, we wouldn’t still be here. Do you think bounty hunters wouldn’t come by here?” At this point, I was about 95% convinced. However, that was only as far as thinking that I would be willing to move on without bothering with them any further. There was still the matter with Tasha’s sense of justice.

  “Alright, I hear you. However, Tasha is still going to want to beat up some bandits today. So…do you mind just fighting us anyways? We can leave you here after the fight and we’ll continue traveling after that.” Timber’s expression remained stable despite my seemingly ridiculous suggestion.

  “That…is a rather outlandish request.”

  “I am willing to listen to your alternatives,” I responded honestly.

  “Well, you want me to offer an alternative that may placate your righteous daughter? Something that would convince her that it is better to leave us alone, at least for now?”

  “Yes, I’m all ears if you have one.” Timber thought for a moment.

  “I would like to confirm something. That group of merchants you were asking about, from everything that has been said, I can tell that they seem highly suspicious. If you do not mind me asking, what kind of people are you looking for? What did they do?” I was surprised to hear this as Timber’s response, but thinking more on it, I also didn’t think it took much to piece together my earlier intentions.

  “I am looking for a group of people posing as merchants. They killed my friend,” I stated simply. Timber nodded in understanding.

  “I see. Well, I cannot say for certain that that was the group you are looking for, especially since I didn’t meet them myself. However, I believe you have other reasons for thinking that this is them.” I nodded, but did not elaborate. “If we come by them again, I will make sure to investigate them more thoroughly. And, if I think it is them, I will personally apprehend them. How does that sound?”

  “This is your alternative?” Could this work? “Ah, I know I said they are murderers, but there isn’t a bounty for them. Not yet, that is.”

  “I’m not offering to help because I also expect to gain a reward.” I looked Timber over, and I thought he seemed slightly upset. “I cannot just allow such a dangerous group to roam freely.”

  “What an unusual bandit, you are.” Timber smiled at me.

  “Well, we are honourable bandits. What can you tell me about them? This will let me know if we find them. Who knows, it could still be a different group.”

  “Their leader wears a green hat. Well, no guarantee he would keep wearing it though.”

  “Ah, were you perhaps thinking that we were them?”

  “That would be another reasonable explanation for why you have items that I have reason to believe may have belonged to my friend.” Timber didn’t seem the least bit shaken by the insinuation. Well, by now, I could probably count at least half a dozen reasons for why Timber couldn’t be who I was looking for.

  “So, your friend was a merchant.”

  “He was. His name was Dennis Loharn. They also stole his membership token.”

  “Alright, I will keep that in mind.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Don’t mention it. Is there anything else you want to tell me or ask about?”

  “They also used poison,” I said, more as a warning for Timber to be on guard.

  “Alright, thanks for that information.”

  “Okay, I trust that you will act accordingly.” I considered adding a threat if they break this agreement, but it seemed unnecessary. “I am going back to explain this to them now.”

  “I hope for a peaceful resolution.” I left and went back to Tasha and Flora, who surprisingly, were talking with some of the bandits. Seeing as how I didn’t see any of them lying on the ground, it looked like the situation was still under control. I told the bandits to go away so I could speak to them alone and they left.

  I still expected quite a bit of resistance from Tasha, but she quietly listened to everything I had to say, and then said that she would go along with it if Flora agreed. Of course, Flora did agree to it, also saying that she didn’t think the bandits were dangerous. I could sense that Tasha wasn’t fully on board, and that she was compromising with us for various reasons. The main one, I assume, was because I was in a hurry to find Dennis’ murderers. In an attempt to improve Tasha’s mood, I promised her that I would ask more about Timber and his bandits once we get to Deimos, and that if anything they told me turned out to be a lie, I would make sure they pay for that. That seemed to help a bit, but Tasha still didn’t seem too happy. That would just be something I would have to deal with later.

  We took the boxes from Timber and then continued on our travels.

  *******************

  Later in the day, after Braith’s encounter with Timber and his bandits, another person crossed the bridge, riding on a black horse. It appeared to be an attractive, young woman with brown hair, with the left side of her hair tied into a braid. She was dressed for traveling, wearing clothes that would be easy and comfortable to move around with, and she also had boots, gloves, a leather vest, and a black, hooded cloak to protect her from the elements. After crossing the Meridiem Bridge, the spear-wielding bandit, Alder, approached her.

  “Who are you?” The woman stopped her horse and gave a small smile.

  “Celia, a traveler,” she responded, her voice light and innocent sounding.

  “Are you a mercenary?” Alder asked.

  “No, just an ordinary traveler,” he responded, maintaining her smile.

  “You will need to pay a toll if you want to pass through here.”

  “How much?” she asked.

  “It is three silver per person and five silver per horse. So, that will be eight silver in total.” Alder fully expected her to argue and was prepared to continue the next part of the dialogue chain. Much to Alder’s surprise, she did not.

  “Alright, just let me take that out for you,” Celia responded, still smiling as she reached into a saddlebag on the side of her horse.

  “Um, miss, are you traveling alone?” Alder asked, honestly a bit perturbed by her compliance.

  “Yes, it is just me,” she replied as she took a purse out of the saddlebag.

  “Were you traveling with anyone earlier?”

  “No, it is just me,” she repeated as she took out a couple silver coins.

  “Are you sure you can afford to pay the toll? There are other alternatives.”

  “Oh, I am fine with this,” she replied as Timber started running over.

  “Okay, well if you are sure you have enough left to get to where you are headed. Are you headed somewhere far?”

  “Hmmm, I don’t think my destination is too far ahead of me,” she said as she pooled together the last few silver coins.

  “Well, if you are not headed too far, we can have a couple people escort you part of the way there,” Alder said, genuinely offering help to this strange woman traveling alone.

  “Oh, thank you for the offer, but that won’t be necessary.” Celia stacked together eight silver coins and held them out for Alder to collect. However, as he was about to reach out for them, Timber called out to him.

  “Stop.” Alder froze and looked over.

  “What is it, boss?” he asked. Timber grabbed Alder’s arm and put it back down.

  “Hello, miss, there seems to be a misunderstanding.”

  “A misunderstanding?” she asked, still smiling for some reason.

  “Yes, you don’t need to pay a toll,” Timber responded. Alder looked back at Timber with confusion but did not dispute him.

  “Oh, but since you are doing such a good job, I’d like to pay you, anyways.” Alder seemed to finally pick up on how wrong the situation seemed.

  “No, no, we appreciate the sentiment, but there is no need.” Timber, still holding onto Alder, started to pull him back. “Please, just go on your way.”

  “Oh, really?”

  “Yes, of course.” Timber responded, still backing away.

  “Well, alright then.” Celia put the silver coins back into her purse and then put the purse back into her saddlebag. “Ah, now that I think about it, maybe I wouldn’t mind a couple escorts.”

  “So sorry, but we are actually going to be very busy with something very soon,” Timber said in response. Celia continued to smile, and that’s when Alder noticed that her eyes had never changed this whole time. It was as if only her mouth was moving.

  “Oh, that’s a shame. Well, I wish you good luck in your endeavour.” Celia finally started to move forward on her horse. However, she suddenly stopped again after entering the clearing. “Oh, I actually have something to ask you.”

  “What is it?” Timber asked calmly.

  “Has anyone else been through here earlier today?” she asked, turning her head around to face them again.

  “No, you are the first.” Celia said nothing for a moment, but briefly, her eyes seemed to smile.

  “Alright, thank you.” Celia’s horse trotted off again. When she was finally out of view, Alder turned to Timber. The rest of the bandits who had also seen the woman pass through also gathered together.

  “Who was that?” Alder asked, with a hint of fear in his voice.

  “Don’t ask that again. Also, if any of you ever see that woman again, ignore her. Pretend she isn’t there and turn away. Do not approach her no matter what.” Most of the other bandits were confused by the extreme level of caution he was advising, but they trusted him more than anyone else, so they simply nodded.

  Timber nodded to himself, thankful that his men trusted him so much. Honestly, Timber didn’t actually know who Celia was either. However, his years of experience told him that she was incredibly dangerous. A lone woman traveling through the outlands without any weapons in sight, and not only having the funds on hand to pay the expensive toll, but the seeming willingness to do so without any fuss. A completely unchanging smile that she wore without any fluctuations on the rest of her face. And, finally, that familiar ominous aura he felt right as she was trying to hand over the toll. It was only for an instant, but having been around a similar source of that kind of aura, he wanted nothing more than to stay as far clear away from that as possible.

  Timber let out a sigh as he strolled around the clearing, hoping to never see that woman again. As he walked though, he noticed the trail of fresh hoof prints left behind. There were the ones left behind by Celia’s horse, but there were also those from Braith and his companions. Timber silently hoped that the two sides wouldn't end up meeting each other.