Grass grew in patches across the plains, scattered and thin, surrounded by miles of wet dirt and the occasional rise of a muddy hill.
The silver spiders hissed, their legs straining against the mud that had swallowed them past the joints. The caravan tilted further to one side, and the crates inside slid with it.
"No, no, no—" Varen lunged forward, catching one crate before it toppled over the edge. Two others weren't so lucky, sliding straight into the muck below.
"Oh God," he said, watching them sink.
"Don't throw yourself over the crates," Claymond said from his seat. "You'll hurt yourself."
"This old crate ain't doing nothing to me." Varen grabbed another one anyway, bracing it with his shoulder.
Kairo stood at the front, watching the spiders sink another inch.
"Stop moving!" he called out to them. "You'll only sink faster!"
"Listen to him," Claymond added.
The spiders went still.
"We need to get them out or the whole caravan tips over," Kairo said. He looked back toward Theo and Onyx. "You two alright?"
"Yeah, fine," Theo said.
"Theo, get over here and help," Varen called.
"On it."
Kairo scanned the open plain around them. (We have run into bandits twice already since leaving the ruins) — this stretch had always promised to be rough, but it was the shortest route they had.
"There must have been heavy rain recently," Claymond said, studying the ground. "This stretch is called the Muddy Plains. Weather here swings hard between dry heat and downpour. We arrived at the worst possible time."
"Didn't you say this was your usual route?"
"It is. I've just always traveled it when the ground was hard and the weather was warmer." Claymond adjusted his glasses. "Bad timing."
"Bad luck," Kairo agreed. Then his eyes moved past the caravan. "But I don't think the mud's our real problem right now."
Varen turned, still holding a crate. "Help me with these first—"
"Leave them," Claymond said. "We have something bigger ahead."
They all looked up.
Atop a low muddy hill, figures had gathered — fourteen, maybe more, axes and swords catching the dull light. One of them laughed and started down the slope.
"Looks like you're stuck," he called. "Need some help? Don't worry — hehehe — we won't hurt you."
He pulled back his hood.
Three young lords stared at exactly one thing.
(...what with the hair?)
The man's hair was shaved into a mohawk and dyed a bright, unmistakable pink.
Claymond sighed. Varen snorted, trying and failing to hold it in.
"Don't," Claymond warned.
"Come on, that's funny—" Varen pointed, grinning, and the man's face went red.
"What's your problem with the hair?!" He stormed forward. "You little bastard—"
Fallon dropped off the caravan before he got three steps, landing in the mud with her shield already raised. Onyx moved in the same instant — a single dash, a leap, grabbing the roof of the caravan and flipping to land on it cleanly. Theo drew his new sword and took position at the edge, boots carefully away from the mud.
"Don't step in the mud," Kairo said.
He looked at the approaching bandits, something nagging at him.
"Why aren't they sinking?"
The bandits laughed. "We've been hunting merchants through these plains for years. You think we'd show up unprepared?"
Kairo looked at their boots — black, soled in bright yellow, small magical circles spinning faintly around the edges.
"Enchanted footwear," Claymond said. "Something built for traversing mud, probably."
The bandits drew their weapons, one of them grinning wide. "Sitting ducks, boys. Get 'em."
Kairo ordered Onyx forward — Onyx was light enough that the mud shouldn't be a problem. But Onyx hesitated for the first time, then converted his lance into a throwing spear and hurled it instead. The bandits scattered easily, laughing.
"Easy work," one said. "And here we thought you'd actually be trouble, with that skeleton and the elf girl." He turned toward Fallon. "Hehehe. Might have some fun tonight after all."
He charged her.
Fallon caught the blow on her shield.
"You'll tire eventually," the bandit said, grinning. "You're knee-deep in mud. Don't make this harder than it needs to be."
"You sure about that?"
The bandit froze.
Internally, Fallon had no plan whatsoever. Her mind scrambled for half a second before landing on something.
(Well, I said it, but what do I do....)
Suddenly, she had an idea.
(Ah-ha.)
"Let's do that, then," she said, and slammed her shield into the ground with everything she had.
A wave of mud erupted outward in every direction. Onyx leapt backward just in time. The bandits cursed as the wave swallowed them whole — but it wasn't a clean win. The same wave coated the spiders in another fresh layer of mud and splattered across the caravan, drenching all three lords inside it.
Onyx managed to avoid most of it. Theo nearly went over the edge of the roof, arms windmilling for balance.
Claymond calmly wiped his glasses.
"Good work, Fallon."
Fallon's expression softened at the praise, something close to a smile breaking through her usual composure.
Kairo wiped mud from his face and looked at the bandits crawling back out of the muck.
"Well," he said. "Let's get to it, then."
"Shit," one bandit muttered, spitting mud. "That bitch is crazy."
"Let's finish this quickly," Kairo said.
To be continued.....