who knows what. Fifer tried to look in through a window once but found it to be covered with a dark cloth to prevent anyone from discovering what was going on inside.
When news came last week that the passes were open to the east, James announced that everyone would be leaving for an extended trip. Didn’t say where they were bound but everyone had a good idea, especially after what happened in Ironhold. Each of the recruits was given the option of staying behind or going with him and all opted to go.
Two days before they left, James told each of the recruits to spend what time they wished with their families before they set out.
When the day came to leave, James, Illan and Jiron brought many packs out from the workshop. Bulging with unknown items, they began securing them to the many pack horses he had acquired during the winter, a dozen in all.
Before he left, he told Roland that if he didn’t return, The Ranch was his to do with as he saw fit. Then he, along with the recruits, Delia and her guards as well as Illan and the others, rode out the lane and took the road north.
Entering through the back door, Fifer finds Ezra putting the last of the food on the table. Arkie is already sitting in his highchair and perks up when he sees Fifer come in through the door. “Ife,” he says in his baby talk. The last month or so he’s begun to talk and be somewhat understood.
Giving the boy a smile, he says to Ezra, “He’ll be in shortly. His balloon got caught in the tree again.”
Shaking her head, she says, “That’s the third time in two days.”
He takes his seat and is amazed at just how large the table seems now that most everyone is gone. Roland and Ezra still reside in the old house, the new one is for James. It was completed not too long after their return from Ironhold and he quickly took up residence there. But until they know for sure that he’s not coming back, he’s still the master and that’s his house.
A few minutes later, the door opens and Roland enters carrying his balloon. A long jagged hole is apparent from where the tree limb had punctured it. He puts it on the counter and then takes his place at the head of the table. That’s his spot now that James is no longer here.
The meal passes quickly, the eaters are no longer in danger of being struck by Arkie’s food, Ezra finally got it through to him that throwing one’s food is not to be tolerated. Afterwards, they adjourn to the living room where they use to have the nightly gatherings.
With just the few here it doesn’t have the joviality that it once did. Fifer wouldn’t even mind hearing another of Uther and Jorry’s fantastical tales. Of course, ever since Delia showed up and stayed, Scar and Potbelly have given them a run for their money. Each night it seemed the two pairs would try to outdo the others in seeing who could tell the most outrageous story. Some were quite good.
Fifer takes his seat on the couch and is immediately attacked by the two puppies James had acquired over the winter. Cyne and Tor, the dogs of Corbin had puppies and he had given James two. One is brown and James began calling him Bandit, the other was black and has the name Shiloh.
“Down boys,” he says as they jump upon his lap, tails wagging furiously in their excitement.
“They sure took a liking to you,” Roland says from his chair near the fireplace.
Ezra joins them and sets Arkie on the ground. Immediately, the pups jump to the floor and begin to wrestle with him, much to his delight. His squeals of excitement elicit barks and before you know it the front room is a veritable cacophony of noise.
Outside the sky is starting to darken. It still hasn’t come to that time of year yet when the sun stays up longer. Ezra begins humming a song they’ve heard a hundred times before. It’s one from her homeland, one that her mother sung to her as a child.
Fifer relaxes, the melody soothing him and he closes his eyes as the music flows over him and through him. Even the play of Arkie and the pups on the floor becomes slightly subdued as each is affected by her voice.
The evening progresses and times of song or stories are intermixed with times of silence. It was during one such time when Bandit’s ears suddenly become erect and he leaps to his feet. Fifer notices him looking around for a few seconds before Shiloh starts acting the same way. A growl begins to come from deep within their throats.
Just then, three flaming balls sail through the open window and land near Arkie. The balls are emitting noxious fumes which quickly fill the room.
Crash!
The front door slams open a second later from the force of someone kicking it. Men armed with swords and crossbows race within.
Ezra screams and rushes to grab Arkie from amidst the burning, smoking balls. Neither Fifer nor Roland are armed.
“Stay right where you are!” the leader of the men tells them.
With Arkie in her arms, Ezra moves to stand behind Roland who has come to his feet. Fifer remains seated, his crutch having been knocked to the floor when the dogs had jumped on him.
“What do you want?” Roland asks, fear for his family evident in his voice.
“First we want your gold,” the leader says. “Then we want your woman.”
In a voice much calmer than the situation would seem to warrant, Roland says, “I advise you to leave while you still can.”
“Ha!” a tall man with red hair says. “You can’t do anything, mage. Your powers have been taken away.”
His head does feel a little fuzzy. Glancing to the smoldering balls lying in the middle of the floor, he realizes what he’s talking about. They must emit something that renders mages unable to focus and draw upon their power. Then realization dawns on him. They think he’s James! If it wasn’t for the gravity of the situation he might have laughed.
“Where’s the gold!” a short, flaxen haired man demands. Holding a crossbow threateningly, he shouts, “Where is it!”
Roland glances to the window and sees even more bandits looking in. At least four crossbows are aimed at him and the others.
“Well?” the leader asks. “Are you going to tell us or do we start by killing the boy?”
“No!” screams Ezra as she clutches Arkie even tighter to her breast.
Before James left, Roland had expressed concern over just this sort of eventuality. What if someone came in search of James and attacked? With just he and Fifer, they would be taken out fast. So James worked it out and said if ever they were in danger here at The Ranch, Roland was to say a certain word.
Staring at the leader of the bandits, he says the word, “Phantasm!”
“What?” the leader questions. Suddenly from outside, a man’s voice cries out in pain and fear. Then more voices are heard as others join their voices with the first. A quick glance to the window shows the men who had been there are there no longer.
A red sphere blossoms to life in the middle of the living room. Bright red with bands of a darker red swirling through its middle, it hovers there for a brief moment.
Screams from outside have turned to high pitched panic as men race away from the house for their lives. Within the house, the remaining bandits stare in nervousness at the sphere hovering before them.
“What trick is this?” demands the leader.
The sphere flashes and a beam of red light strikes the leader in the chest. A cry of agony is torn from his throat as it burns a hole completely through him. As he falls to the floor dead, the other bandits panic and turn to flee from the house. One of the crossbowmen lets fly a bolt at Roland but a red beam flashes out and destroys it before it can reach him.
Three more flashes and three more bandits fall to the floor dead before the rest can leave the house. Fifer retrieves his crutch from off the floor and quickly moves to the window to see what’s going on outside. Bandits lie dead on the ground and more flashes can be seen off in the woods as multiple red spheres pursue those still alive. Their screams and cries of pain grow fainter the further they move away from the house. The sphere which had materialized within the house suddenly winks out.
“It’s okay,” Roland says to Ezra who has her head buried in the crook of his neck. Sobbing, she still clutches Arkie in her hands. He pats her on the back as he tries to calm her.
“What’s going on out there?” he asks Fifer.
“I don’t think any are getting away,” he replies. “Whatever James set up is taking them all out fast.”
