Fool's Gold Ch.3

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Chapter 3
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Messenger of the Shadow
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With the passing of days, the Leavance Bandits had spent their time winding down and planning for their next move. And, well... Ichiro was also forced to help Midas fix up the back tunnel.
Kaiser and Midas carefully discussed where they needed to be on the coming new moon night- for it was then they would come to face with this "Shadow Warrior" Igos wrote about in his parcel. If this was a skilled warrior, they had a feeling they were in for a rude fight. But surely, that possibility wouldn't stop Midas. After all, it'd be more bragging rights...

The calculative leader watched as days and nights pass, up till the night came that they would forward their travels for Pastrene Village on the north of Ikana Field. It'd be a long trek, but Midas knew they could make it so long as they show up before sundown. Once there, the only thing left to do would be to wait for the suspicious character to show up. And if they are anything like the Ikanian knights, then they'd have no trouble identifying them...


"Alright..." Midas began. He rolled up the map, shoved it in a potato sack with anything else they were taking, then tied it up. He then continued what he was saying. "Do you all understand tonight's plans?"
Out of order nods came from his comrades- granted Ichiro was really sour about it.

"We are all to remain together until we arrive at Pastrene." Kaiser repeated in a stoic fashion. "Once we reach our destination, we are to split up and watch over the north, east, south, and west sides of the village. Midas and I get the west side, Pyne is set to the south side, Ichiro gets the north side, and Jiro gets the east. If the warrior is found, report back to Midas and I immediately. You are not to engage this person until Midas has said so, until we are outside of guard territory."
Midas gave a pleased nod. "And what is our objective?"
The short tunnel scrub looked to Ichiro. The fox grunted and looked away a margin. This caused Midas to growl lowly and repeat his question. "What is our goal?"
With slight frustrated hesitation, the red keaton replied gravelly. "To ambush the warrior and retrieve as much information as possible..."

"Good." Midas finished. He turned to Kaiser, motioning his head forward. "Let us depart, brother."
Kaiser dipped his head in agreement, before beginning toward the exit with Midas. The tunnel scrub made a sharp whistle to get everyone's attention, and they all filed out of the burrow with him. From there on, they trekked out through the dusk-falling field with careful haste. Staying low and using the tall grass to their advantage, the bandits made the travel like silent mice. Ichiro and Jiro were running on all fours ahead of the deku. There hadn't been much trouble on the way, but the sun slowly found its way down the horizon the further north they headed. By the time they arrived, the sun had fled and the lunar god himself rose on the opposite side of the land.

The Leavance Bandits stopped at the wall of the town. A wall that hadn’t been there before… The barricade was made up of tremendously sized logs, standing what looked to the small bandits miles high. The gates of the town were heavily guarded with armed soldiers- most likely Ikanian. Having surveyed this knowledge, they remained hidden. Pyne was about to question how they'd get in till Kaiser looked up to examine the tall wooden fence that barricaded the village, built as if to keep things out. It almost looked like a prison yard... The walls were no problem for them however. Kaiser and Midas pulled out their dual weapons, already knowing what to do. Kaiser stabbed one of his scythes into one of the wooden posts, using them to climb the walls. Pyne wrapped a vine around him and hoisted her herself up with him. Midas climbed alongside him, and the keaton brothers were soon to start climbing the fence as well.

Once they were at the top of the fence, they looked over the village from their fence posts, now able to see the living space of Pastrene. Smoke rose from building vents and the village seemed to be heavily guarded even on the inside... Midas hummed to himself, questioning whether saving Pastrene for their ambush was a good idea or not. Last time he came here, it didn't look like this. He even spotted prisoners bound in chains being lead off into some nearby mines... Was the village also a prisoner camp? He soon shrugged it off, seeing as he didn't care for the humans- prisoner or not. They must've done something to earn their time in here, so he didn't care much to find out why they were in chains in the first place.

Looking onward further into the village, beyond some wire fencing was the actual village. Looked like the village itself is still there, it just had some sort of mining facility added on over the many years since Midas last passed through here. He looked to Kaiser and Pyne, leaf signing- "Be vigilant. Guards everywhere… We’ll hide in the village far from the guarded area. Should anything break out, we can be long-gone before they realize." he then turned to the keatons, repeating this. Once all was done, Midas set them all off to stand watch over their respective posts. The village was surprisingly unprotected… Seems not much happened here.

After making their way into the village area via the fence lines, Midas and Kaiser positioned themselves hidden on the rooftop of one of the west buildings, hiding themselves among some low branches from a nearby tree. Ichiro planted himself north of the village coiled up on a large branch, and Jiro camped east atop a shed. Pyne remained in a bush south of the village along the fence-side. It wasn't a very original hiding place, but hey! It worked since she is literally a walking bush.


Time carried on and the night grew high. The village was asleep for the most part, leaving only the sounds of the workers from the prison camp. It didn't sound fun, that's for sure...

After what felt like hours, Midas growled lowly.
"Where is he?" Midas grumbled. "You would think he would have been here by now."
Kaiser offered a low hum before replying. "Patience. The parcel said he would be visiting every settlement after all. It takes time I'm sure."
With a gruff sigh, Midas rested with his legs crossed and his posture arched forward. His sharp eyes glared into the night in frustration. He studied the village with pure intent, watching humans every now and then do their nightly duties. He scoffed at this, watching two humans argue over the well at the center of town. They were so petty... As his focus remained, his pose melted downward and his head landed in one of his palms.
"Do they realize how much they already have?" Midas growled. This caused Kaiser to bring his attention to the arguing humans, but he lacked a response. Midas then continued.
"They quarrel over who gets what, when there is clearly plenty for all of them. They have taken so much from us. Must they need more?"

Kaiser brought his attention back to the streets, bringing himself to watch-duty once more. "Humans are imbeciles. They are never satisfied, if you have not noticed."
"Clearly..." Midas mused. "Sometimes it's almost entertaining to watch them argue over something as petty as a well full of water."
"Hmpf." was all Kaiser could respond. This brought his brother to glance at him.
After some time, Midas chuckled lightly. "Just think... One day, we will rule over all them. You get the throne and create the biggest kingdom known to deku kind, and I make sure it all stays in-line."
Kaiser's eye widened before looking back to Midas. With some thought, he sighed. "Well, let us hope that the monsters of Ikana agree."

Midas answered with confidence in his low voice. "After we defeat Igos and give the monsters the freedom of the land again? I don't see why they wouldn't."
"Let us not forget that some of those monsters will not want to follow a deku scrub as their leader."
It was then one of Midas' leaves flicked and he chuckled, "I already lead some, do I not? With you and I at the helm, ne'er a single being can control us."

Kaiser stared sidelong at Midas. He had faith in his brother, but hoped at least he was thinking this through. But so far, Midas had gotten them all far along without any deaths.
"And what of my condition?" Kaiser said lowly in his typical tone of voice.
Midas showed concern over the question... His eyes fell to the streets below in puzzlement, then his answer followed. "I will be sure to find some way to aid in that."

Silence was to follow for a few moments. The argument down in the streets had ended by now, and all was relatively quiet once more. Midas had now become occupied with the view of the village from up high, keeping his eyes peeled for any strange people... Or deku...
"No sign of Lyn tonight..." Kaiser muttered.
"Puh! Good riddance. Best case scenario, she is someone's fire mat right now." Midas seethed.
Kaiser chuckled at his comment. "First deku you ever wanted dead. As well the first female."
"And for good reason. If she isn't going to aid and only hinder, she might as well be. She is of no use to me." Midas finished. "If we are lucky, we can slay the man early and go home before we get any chances of seeing her."
"I don't expect this warrior to just cough up information." Kaiser commented. "I doubt it will be that easy."
With the stated information, Midas sighed. "I am aware. It is merely wishful thinking my friend..." he then included, "I'm feeling generous tonight... First one to find him gets a reward." he teased.

Kaiser offered a raised brow at Midas for the sudden comment. "Reward?"
"Heh, yeah. I don't know what yet, but I will surely think of something."
It took a while, but Kaiser would eventually answer. "And what if it is you or I?"
Midas shrugged, "Between ourselves, winner decides on what we do next."
There was a small hard-to-notice smile under Kaiser's eye. "... Fair enough. In case it is not ourselves however..."

"I can bet Jiro will be the first to find him." Midas cut in. "Ichiro is too wound tight, and Pyne is... Well... A little on the unfocused side."

Feeling a response on the way, Kaiser voiced it plainly.
"I don't know... Having four eyes can have benefit. Pyne is also the best of us all to not be noticed easily."
With a whip of the head, Midas smirked. "Shall we place rupees where your argument stands?"
"... Okay." Kaiser answered, stoic in tone. "If you feel a bet is in order."
Midas placed his hand down on top of the roof lightly. "Sixty rupees brother."
Kaiser responded with a silent look. It was enough of an agreement for Midas, at least.

"Not that it will matter in the end." Kaiser commented. "All the rupees are going in the same place anyway."
Midas was preparing to reply, but there was a peculiar sound that brought both scrubs to a halt. Clatter, shouting, and terror.
"Do you hear that?" Midas asked lowly. "... It's coming from the north."
The sound grew nearer and louder, more frantic with each passing minute. Soon, a few villagers- some men, some women, came dashing across around some houses in terror. Behind them, a cloaked man with a long white braid and a covered face came leaping out from the alleys, swinging a katana. It wasn't at the people however, it was something else. Growls and beastly noises was soon to come into the area, but it didn't take long for Midas to know the noises.

The man began running once more, shoving people to move out of harm's way. But like a rabid animal, a red four-tailed fox monster came out dashing on all fours, out of the streets with a sword in its mouth. It parkoured off the wall of a house before running to follow the man, dead-bent on its target. The monster got to its back legs long enough to slash through the villagers trying to escape, killing and wounding many on his path.
Midas hissed at his companion down below with a gritty growl. "What in Lunareaus' name is Ichiro doing!?" He barked.
Kaiser was quick to draw his scythes and began running across the roof. And certainly, Midas was not far behind.


Ichiro hissed and growled, chasing the man with red in his eyes. He wouldn't let him escape! He bounced over a few barrels and structures, kangroo'ing off them for speed. By now, he was dashing as fast as his legs could on two, holding his blade back furiously. It was then the man finally turned and threw an object at the ground, and it exploded in a bright flash, blinding Ichiro!
With a sharp growl, he stopped to cover his eyes. Ichiro pawed at them for a few seconds to remove the flash of the deku nut from his sight, allowing an easy kick to the side of his head. A sharp yelp followed, and he stumbled sideways. Aimlessly, he swung the sword at the white-haired human, but the warrior deflected with the katana.

They were locked, scraping the blades to make the killing blow. Ichiro's monstrous eyes focused on the man's face, studying his appearance closely now that his vision was returning. The man was wearing a yellow and red fox's mask- insult to injury. The man seemed to be of a similar culture of keatons by the fighting style. Ichiro bared his teeth, struggling to hold the lock. He eventually lost the battle of strength and had his already mangled ear sliced into! Had Ichiro not moved, that would have gone straight through his head!

Ichiro jumped off to the side, then spring-boarded off the well and lunged at the man's face, gnashing his teeth onto his mask! He gripped the human with his claws and hung on, attempting to maul the mask off. The man grunted and struggled, but successfully halted the attack by dropping his katana and gripping Ichiro's jaws, prying them open and forcefully throwing the keaton bandit at the well. There was a sharp yelp before falling to the ground. Whimpering upon having his back slammed against the stone, he recovered lamely and tried getting to all fours, growling at his target. He had chunks of mask in his mouth and spat it out.

Part of the left eye and forehead were visible, clear scratches on the man's exposed face. On his forehead was a crying eye symbol, akin to the one on the map Midas had stolen.

"You mock us with that face! What clan are you from!? What is your objective??" Ichiro roared. "Do not play coy, I know you were sent by the king to gather warriors. Why!?"
There was no answer. The warrior only picked up his katana and prepared to fight more should Ichiro not give up. And the man was right to assume so. Ichiro scrambled to his hind legs, sliding his sword off the ground and swung it the warrior's way, but the human was far too skilled and far more focused, using the metal-plated shielding on his arm to stop the blow.

Before the fox could react, the man had moved with incredible speed, weaving around the sword and grabbed Ichiro's paw-hand, twisting his wrist in a way that forced him to drop his weapon. Ichiro's mouth flung open with sharp yelps and cries, pulling away like an injured animal. He proceeded to wildly attack and bite at the man's arm, but he only bit into the metal plating.
"Monsters have no place plaguing Ikana." the man said simply. "Who we are is of no concern to you. But should your kind continue running rampant, you will surely see my people again."

He held up his katana, posing it to toward Ichiro's chest. The man grabbed his throat, catching him still and far enough away to where Ichiro could not reach.
From the side, Jiro came running through the village in an attempt to stop his brother, but was met by the sight of his sure demise. Jiro, terror-driven, dashed over and drew his sword. Of course, the man was not surprised to see another. He was quick to use Ichiro to guard himself, stopping Jiro right away!
"P-please, release my brother! He was rash to a-attack you! W-we'll leave, we'll do whatever you want, just don't kill him!" Jiro cried.

The warrior choked Ichiro, the fox gagging to be released.
"The king issued the law that no monsters should step foot on these lands, for the settlements of the fields are property of the kingdom. You are breaking a law, and that cannot go unpunished. What's worse, villagers were murdered tonight by your hands. And also attacking a man of the king. All are crimes beyond imprisonment. You question me, but you are the ones who sought war on Ikana. You are spies of the war, are you not? I don't know how you followed me, but for all you have probably seen and heard, I cannot let you go."

Jiro whimpered, "I beg of you! We are sorry, we are!"
"You should never trust the words of a fox. Shalt a fox speak, they only speak in lies and riddles." he finished. He dropped Ichiro's breath-deprived form, allowing the creature to wheeze on the ground. He hung the katana over Ichiro's face, and he could only watch. And Jiro knew that if he moved, Ichiro would die. He grit his teeth and began whimpering. But he saw the shadows of Midas and Kaiser nearby... Oh thank goodness.

He swallowed, speaking again. Jiro may have been innocent and childish, but he was still a keaton- and a cunning one at that.
He put his front paws together, crying lowly. He made an honorable bow of defeat "... If you must, take us."
"What!?" Ichiro roared.
Ichiro dropped to his knees, begging with his tails low. "We will stay quiet, we will not speak a peep of what we know... Take us back to the castle dungeons, hold us hostage, anything... For the sparing of my brother and I's life, you may take us for information... After all, we have put to shame our duties by our rash decisions, and I cannot bare facing my people again after our blunder."

The one visible eye glared. "You are tricking me."
"I speak the truth." Jiro replied, tears in his eyes. Genuine whimpers left his muzzle and his teeth clattered worriedly. "My brother is the only family I have, I cannot lose him! Please, please, I beg you!" Jiro threw his weapon across the center of town. "I am unarmed, I have no intent to causing trouble."
"My people see all truth. I see through your lies." he scoffed.

Ichiro finally chimed in- carefully so not to get himself killed.
"My brother speaks the truth." he sighed. Ichiro looked up onto the nose of the blade. "I would take capture over death." he struggled to do so, but he tossed his blade. "It was my recklessness that got my brother and I here. Don't let him suffer for what I did, let him live... I... Surrender..." he finished sullenly. It was genuine however, seeing as he didn't know Midas and Kaiser were creeping closer.

The warrior held the sword by Ichiro's forehead, glaring at Jiro.
"If you speak honestly, then come closer. Should you try anything suspicious, just know there will not be forgiveness."
Jiro never hesitated, proving he was telling the truth. He slunk over in fear, standing before the warrior. He studied the mark on the man's forehead, before lowering his face. He held out his paws. The man forcefully grabbed Jiro, holding his arms behind him. He proceeded to to sheath his weapon and yank Ichiro up. Oh, how Ichiro fought to not bite the man's face off!

Shink!
There was suddenly a blade in the man's back and he screamed, tossing Ichiro and Jiro away from the sheer pain. The two foxes yelped and turned, first thing they saw was Kaiser pulling a scythe away from the warrior's back and leaping away to avoid the man's katana. It helped Kaiser's case that his weapons with extended reach. But there was no Midas.

Kaiser swung his scythes at his sides, before stopping to hold them in fighting position. The warrior skillfully whipped his blade, getting himself caught in blade-combat with Kaiser's double sickles.
Kaiser rotated and turned the scythes, blocking the katana with loud shings and clatter, causing sparks in the night. The two slid and moved, both fighting on a razor's edge. Kaiser ducked an attack, sliding a scythe toward the man's legs. But the warrior was far too skilled to fall for that!

He jumped over Kaiser's attack, landing a kick to the side of Kaiser's head. It knocked him sideways, but the half-blind scrub caught himself and rolled. From an on-knee's position, he held the scythes up in an X shape and caught the Katana between them. The warrior could tell this was no ordinary deku scrub- this was of the far more skilled variety, one who knew what he was doing.
"I should have known that there would be more than one spy." the warrior seethed. "You must be the monster group that has been attacking the villages here in the fields. I had heard it was composed of small-time monsters, so I thought nothing of it. I can see I was wrong to let it go as long as I did."

Kaiser glared and grunted, flinging the scythes up and pushed the katana away, allowing him enough time to move.
Coming in from the side, Midas jumped from an elevated pile of wood nearby, aiming to strike the man in the head. But the warrior moved and Midas missed! He landed beside Kaiser, holding his daggers back-handed.

Kaiser and Midas split up and ran around the warrior by opposite sides, fighting off the man's katana! It was clear this man was more than a simple Ikanian soldier, if not only by his mysterious appearance, but his incredible skill and speed. One could say he was ninja-like! Midas and Kaiser were having a tough time fighting him off even with the two of them. Meanwhile, Jiro was helping his brother regain his breath.

Midas fired a deku nut into the man's face, but it failed to do much good and Midas was met by a kartana to the snout. The tunnel scrub leaned away just in time, though it left a cut leading from the inner exit of his snout of out, making him squeak. Kaiser stopped the warrior from sending in another diagonal slash and blocked it for Midas. It allowed Midas to recover long enough to regain focus.

To rid himself of the pain and sap, Midas gathered a sticky bubble in his snout before spitting it at the man's hand which held the weapon. It made the katana hard to handle, forcing him to switch to his other hand. Unfortunately, he was just as skilled with this hand, much to Midas’ displeasure.
The tunnel scrub slid under the warrior, slicing at his legs as he went through. But this human wouldn't go down so easily like the guards he killed a few nights ago, no sir! Without faltering, the warrior flung around roundhouse kicked Midas in the side. The tunnel scrub was sent flying. He grunted when he rolled and impacted the ground. But hastily, he dizzily drew himself to his feet again, not quite so willing to go down.

Kaiser latched one of his scythes on the man's arm and pulled. It raked the metal plating and caught the warrior by surprise. Once closer, Kaiser stabbed the other scythe forward, but the weapon was twisted from his hand and tossed. The katana was held at stabbing position and was thrusted at Kaiser.
The katana was thrown off aim when a tossed dagger knocked it off course. By the time the warrior turned, Midas was meeting Kaiser's side. Kaiser lifted Midas like a spring board, and Midas jumped and came down on the warrior's outreached arm, slicing down on the man's hand!

Midas' feet met the ground, he and Kaiser stepping back. The warrior was frozen in place, staring at them both with his one exposed eye wide in shock. How had the man been so careless? Pain rang through his hand and arm. Both parties panted during the pause of their death battle. But the soft drip of something broke the silence.
Two of the warrior's fingers from his right hand were clean gone. His hand trembled for a minute, until he sheathed his blade and carried a stoic position. He had nothing to say. He was not defeated- there was no victory if no one had fallen.

Midas growled and snarled his snout, bloody-sap dripping from it. His eyes were glowing out from under his bangs.
"Tell your king that we will never abide by his law. And should I ever see you lay a hand on my people, I will take more than your fingers."

The warrior glared... "I will certainly let the king know. You can count on that. I went easy thinking I could defeat you… Next time should we meet, I’ll know what to expect."
The man rose his non-injured hand and tossed something at the ground. Midas and Kaiser shielded their faces, but when they looked again he was gone.

Kaiser grumbled, putting away his weapons. Midas wiped his face, silently cursing the man for putting a slit in his snout. But he'd quickly get over it when his attention focused on the severed fingers on the ground... Midas sheathed his daggers with a satisfied huff.
"Well brother, what now?" Kaiser spoke.
"I am very cross..." Midas growled, "Nothing went as planned. Only information we have is that there is a war going on. Is it not shady that the king would keep that information from these mainlands? What's worse, we nearly lost a man tonight."

Midas turned and pierced daggers into Ichiro. Instantly, the fox lowered his ears, but he carried a snarl on his face. Midas studied the area. People had fled quite some time ago, so the area was deserted. And there were fallen people littering the alley from earlier. Midas approached Ichiro sternly.
"Ichiro... You disobeyed me, you attracted attention, and you disrespected your brother. You are forbidden from missions for the next seven days. You are to stay in the burrow and not leave."
"What!? I need to hunt thou-"
"Your brother can share, can he not? You will get a small percent of his food. That should tide you over." Midas picked up Ichiro's sword and shoved it into the sheath. "You nearly got your brother and yourself killed! Of all the reckless bullcrap I have seen you do, this was the worst. You owe your brother for going so far to get you out of trouble."

Kaiser cleared his throat. "I think this is best discussed somewhere else... Best we not attract any more attention than we have..."
With a sigh, Midas replied. "Agreed."

Not too long after, Pyne came running through. She stopped before one of the dead villagers, squeaking in horror.
"Whoa! What happened here!? Who died!?"
Ichiro huffed, and Jiro whimpered with his head lowered. Midas shook his head with his palm to his face.
"We will talk about it later. For now, I think Ichiro best be leading us out of here... Since he seems to know what he is doing." Midas finished while shoving him forward. Ichiro growled and left the area, leading the group out. They took to the shadows and vanished from the village.

Once outside town hidden in the tall grass, Jiro was now calmed down enough to poke Midas' shoulder. The tunnel scrub turned to look up at Jiro with a scowl. The look made the fox nervous, and he handed Midas something.
"What is this?" Midas questioned. He looked it over, and it appeared to be a list and a parcel.
Jiro cleared his throat. "When that man had us, I snatched this off his belt when Kaiser attacked. I figured since we didn't get what we wanted, this would at least make up for it."
Midas was reading over it, and his scowl melted into a small grin. "No, this makes up for it. Good work, Jiro... Kaiser and I will study this when we are safe at home."



To Be Continued...