The Union

"Can"t you run a little faster?" Jop complained

"I"m trying!"

"Then try harder. You are too slow"

Elisar did not answer. He was not slow, Jop was just a fast runner. Jop was one of the fittest people he knew.

After a while, they reached the tree where they tied their horses into. The Tulosans were now awake. The camp was bustling with activity. Elisar wasn"t worried that the Tulosans would be able to put out the fire. And even if they were able to, most if not all of the food were already burnt by now. Their mission was a success. The only thing left to do was to escape.

The pair mounted their horse and fled. Knightsend was still a few days away. They can"t lower their guard until they were inside the walls of Knightsend.

Elisar still can"t believe that they succeeded. They had done things like this before, but those sabotage missions were smaller and less daring compared to what they accomplished today. They actually did it. They snuck inside the Tulosan camp, burnt their food and escaped. He would be lying if he said that their little adventure did not make him feel a little euphoric. Of course it wasn"t easy and there were many close calls, but in the end they accomplished their mission.

He looked at Jop. Elisar may not want to admit it, but he and Jop were a good team. He was smart but weak, and Jop was strong but a little slow-witted. Maybe Prince Timothy would entrust them with missions like this in the future. It would be dangerous but Elisar felt his body shiver from excitement. Of course he didn"t want to admit this to Jop or else his friend would feel proud about himself. He was strict towards his friend, but Elisar really cares for him. His friend may blabber stupid things but the truth is, Elisar enjoyed listening to all the stupid things Jop talked about.

"We"re being followed!" Jop shouted

Elisar snapped back to his senses after hearing Jop. He turned his head and confirmed what Jop said. Elisar"s vision wasn"t sharp so he only saw several moving dots at the distance. He asked Jop about the details of their followers.

"I counted three so far." Jop answered "I think they are Whistlers"

"Why?" Elisar asked. He was surprised that Jop was able to find out about that. It was so dark and he himself can"t even determine their numbers.

"Because they are wearing leather armor and" Jop squinted as if confirming his observation "They are fast. They are gaining on us El!"

Elisar clutched the reins of his horse. He can"t get any faster. He was never a good rider to begin with. He cursed himself for lacking talent.

"I can"t go any faster" he admitted to Jop

"They will catch us with this speed."

"Can you go faster?"

"Of course" Jop answered "Their horses may be fast, but the rooster prince lent us the fastest horses in the army remember? Your horse is also fast, you just need to tilt your body a little and mind the timing of your body movements"

Elisar tried to shift his body a little but he can"t find the proper balance. He almost fell at one point.

"I really can"t make this beast run faster!"

"They are close El! At this rate they will catch us in a few minutes"

Elisar looked at the Tulosans again. He can now see their leather armor. They were close, dangerously close. He was dragging Jop down. He needs to think of something, anything that can help them escape this predicament. But there was nothing he could think of. The Whistlers were faster and they can"t lose them. They also can"t defeat the three Tulosans . There was no other way. He made a decision.

"Jop" he called "Do you remember what I said earlier about the beneficiary of my pension?"

"What?" Jop turned to him. "Now is not the time El. Think of a way that will get us out of this. That"s your job"

"There"s no other way Jop. I can"t think of any plan that will save both our a.s.ses." He smiled bitterly "Anyway, about my pension. I lied. I do not intent to divide my pension among the century in case I die"

"Then who is your beneficiary? Don"t tell me you have a secret wife and child" Jop chuckled

"It"s you Jop. I left all my savings and my pension in your name. Get it."

"You"re kidding right?" Jop asked "Why would you make me your beneficiary?"

"Because you are my friend, my closest friend. Since we were little I"ve known you. I was always strict with you. I always reprimanded you and I was always cold towards you. But that"s just the way I am, Jop. That"s just my personality. I"m sorry if my words hurt you before. I hope you can understand. And I want you to know that you are my best friend." Elisar felt tears falling from his eyes. "You"ll always be, until my last breath and beyond"

"Are you crying?" Jop confusedly asked "El you"re scaring me. Why are you acting this way?"

" Report to Prince Timothy that we succeeded in our mission. I"ll hold them. You go on. You"re a good rider so the time I can buy you should be enough"

"What!" Jop glared at him "No El, don"t. Don"t even think or talk about such nonsense. You always reprimanded me for talking nonsense all the time. Now you are talking nonsense. Don"t steal my job El! I"m the only one qualified to talk nonsense! We can do this. We can find a way like how we always do. With your brain and my talent, we can do anything. So don"t talk nonsense!" he screamed

Elisar gave his friend one last smile. "Goodbye Jop" he grabbed the reins of his horse and turned the animal around. He unsheathed his sword and charged towards the Tulosans.

His objective was to delay them for as long as possible. He leaned his body forward. He can hear the wind brushing against his face. It was a cold night. What a cold night to be a cold corpse, he thought.

The distance between him and the Tulosans shrank rapidly. Three versus one, what a heroic way to die. The bards won"t sing of his death, but it"s okay. He will die tonight, but Jop will live. The Tulosans will kill him, but he will make them work for it.

The Tulosans maneuvered their horses so that Elisar would pa.s.s between them. That way, they could attack him from all sides. Elisar raised his sword and lowered his body. He may be weak compared to Jop, but he was still a soldier. He knows how to fight at least.

The Tulosan on his right swung his sword towards Elisar"s head. Elisar dodge. He then swung his sword and aimed not on the Tulosan, but on the horse. His sword wounded the animal on its leg. Elisar did not attack the Tulosan because the man was wearing leather armor . Although leather was inferior compared to mail, it still offers good protection. The horse, on the other hand, had no armor. If he crippled the animal, then the Tulosan can"t chase Jop.

Unfortunately, his victory was short-lived. The Tulosan on his left stabbed his horse. It was a fatal strike and the horse fell. Elisar was able to jump in time and he avoided being crushed by the horse. His body hit the ground and air escaped his lungs. To make things worse, the Tulosans turned their horses around and surrounded him.

" Drop your weapon and come with us. Our Prefect wants to talk with you." the Tulosan whose horse he cut said. The man dismounted his injured horse and approached him. Meanwhile, the two who were on horseback flanked Elisar.

"Your Prefect wants to interrogate me about Prince Timothy"s plan. Unfortunately, I don"t know what his plan is. And even if I did, I won"t tell you" he replied. Elisar was actually telling the truth. Aside from burning the Tulosans" food, he doesn"t know anything about Prince Timothy"s plan.

"Fool. You only had one chance and you threw it away." the Tulosan pointed at Elisar "Kill him."

The two Tulosans on horseback prepared their swords. Elisar was about to close his eyes and accept death when he saw someone charging towards them. Upon realizing who it was, he frowned. Moron! Jop you Moron! Why did you come back? He cursed.

Jop"s charge was silent and fast. Additionally, the Tulosans were distracted. Jop buried his sword into one of the Tulosans. The sword stabbed through the man"s skull. Jop then dueled the other Tulosan on horseback.

Elisar was surprised but he quickly recovered his senses. The Tulosan on foot will be his opponent. He grabbed his sword and rushed towards the Tulosan. His opponent was surprised by the sudden turn of events. Elisar swung his sword and the Tulosan was too slow. Elisar"s sword cut the Tulosan"s face. The man screamed and instinctively held his wound. Wrong move, Elisar thought. He used the time and stabbed his sword into the man"s armpit. The sword pierced the Tulosan"s heart. Elisar won.

A few meters away, Jop was able to defeat his opponent. It took a while, but the Tulosan finally succ.u.mbed to his wounds.

"Fool!" Jop shouted " I thought you are the smart one between the two of us?"

Elisar was exhausted so he sat on the ground "Sorry. I thought we couldn"t defeat them. I was wrong."

"Well genius, you got two more things wrong"

Elisar looked up to him. Jop dismounted his horse "You thought that rooster prince would need the confirmation of our success. But no, he doesn"t." he approached him "And you also thought that I would abandon you. Well you"re wrong, I would never abandon my partner." He offered his hand

Elisar tried to talk but he couldn"t. He did not expect that Jop would come back for him. "Thank you" he finally said. He then grabbed Jop"s hand and stood up.

"Let"s go back brother" Jop said with a smile